Not Quite Broken
by LucyRed12
Summary: Being obedient is a little difficult when you're being ordered around by someone like Chara. Especially when they just want to see you break. Sans made a deal to keep his brother from suffering, in exchange for his own. It's a pretty shitty bargain, but what else can he do? Part 2 of Just Our Hell Series (Sequel to New Home)
1. Games

Sans used to love games.

He has fond memories of running around with Papyrus through the snow when they were younger, pelting snowballs at each other, building forts, tackling each other and generally just being children. Children love to play, after all. And apparently Chara is no different.

Their laughter sounds closer as he sprints down the river bank, panting and gasping for air. Just thirty seconds he just has to stay out of their grasp for thirty more seconds-

Abruptly he stumbles and finds his face hitting the snow, and before he can stagger back to his feet, Chara has grabbed the back of his collar and is holding his upper body above the ground. They grin manically as he chokes and struggles to get to his knees to ease the pressure off of his neck. "I win~"

Sans shuts his eyes at the second peal of laughter that rings in his ears. All of the childlike delight he used to take in 'tag' has completely lost its appeal. "yeah...there's...there's a..shocker…"

"What do you think Sans, shall we play again?" They say, tugging his collar tighter.

He chokes, holding his throat, "y-you never...never get..tired of...beating me...do you…? eheh…"

"You didn't answer my question so I will assume you want to play again. So, what should the punishment for being caught be? Hmmmm~"

"up to you.." Sans answers, awkwardly bracing his feet under him with his legs mostly bent to relieve his choking, "it always is.."

"Wow, Sansy is actually right for once! Alright, the punishment for getting caught will be a broken arm. How does that sound?"

"uh…'disarming'..."

The child laughs. "Okay, for that one you get an extra five second head start. Ready? Go!" They release his collar, staying in place as they begin to count aloud how long he has to get as far away as possible. "15, 14, 13, 12..."

Sans takes in a breath, forcing himself forward. His shoulders are heaving heavily and his vision is spinning. He really wishes he would have taken up Papyrus's consistent offers of morning runs. Maybe then he wouldn't be suffering so much. Of course, Chara would just find a way to even that out, if that were the case…

He takes an abrupt left when he comes to the library, running around the back pushing open the window, jumping inside before closing it again. Immediately he collapses to his seat, wheezing and gasping heavily with a hand over his chest, eyes shut tight. What did it feel like to not be exhausted, again? Sans isn't sure he can remember. All he's sure about is that his legs are about to disconnect at the knees, he's so sore ...

"5,4,3,2,1! Here I cooome~"

Sans pushes himself behind a bookshelf - just a few seconds. Just a few seconds to catch his breath and he'd-

He closes his eyes to blink, and falls asleep.

"Sans, Sans, Sans. Tag is hardly Tag if the runners hide and fall asleep, that sounds more like hide and seek to me."

He jolts awake at the sound of their voice, "oh sh…. shoot …" Sans winces, scooting a little further against the wall, "h-heh...sorry...uh...didn't mean to turn this into a round of 'hide and go sleep '.." He forces a grin.

"Give me your arm~"

Swallowing, Sans tugs back the sleeve of his left arm and holds it out, trying to keep it from shaking. They hold it for a moment, then twist it sharply, hearing a snap.

"GAH!" Sans tries to jerk his arm back.

They maintain their grip on it, but clutch it by the elbow. "When I said your arm, I meant your whole arm Sansy~"

His eyes squint up, "c-c'mon, kid.." He pleads. Don't they know how much a broken arm hurts…?

...yeah of course they do. He's broken their's more times than he can remember. The problem isn't a lack of empathy. They just really really enjoy seeing him suffer. With a quick motion, his elbow snaps, and they move onto his wrist. Sans grits his teeth and shuts his eyes tightly, curling up his other fist and breathing heavily.

"Awww, is Sansy being brave? Shame I do not have any lollipops for you~" They mock, as they slowly start to twist his wrist.

"hff...you're a...sore winner...y'know…" A brief but sharp cry escapes him as the bone snaps, and he ducks his head forward, shoulders heaving silently. "not..not a lot of fun to play rigged games, either.."

"It's not my fault you fell asleep." They counter, grabbing a finger.

"your fault i'm this tired.." Sans jolts a little as his pinky snaps, "ow."

Chara pauses, "...you know what? I'm bored of breaking your hands all the time." They sit back.

Sans doesn't let his guard down for a second, "so then what-?"

His left ankle is suddenly viciously twisted and he cries out, lurching forward and shutting his eyes tightly, "AH! h-holy f...g-gh.."

"Now, I think you need some exercise after all that sleeping, lazybones." Chara clips the leash on to his collar and forces him to his feet, "How about a nice long walk?"

"k-kid can't...can't we please call...call it a day…?" Sans tries, standing heavily on his right leg and panting.

"Nonsense, pets need a lot of proper exercise~"

"ten consecutive games of tag is plenty, Chara, trust me…"

They pull him along. "Don't be an idiot. We are going on a walk and that is final."

"not like putting it to a vote would solve anything."Sans says wearily, limping after them at as steady a pace as he can manage. He really hates their 'walks'...which is often just Chara leading him along their paths of destruction and telling him different stories about who they found where and how they murdered them and what they'd tried to do to escape Chara and survive...overall not a good time.

"The woods are so peaceful with everyone being dead, don't you agree, Sans?"

"...it's really quiet." He answers neutrally.

" Especially with Papyrus gone….he was always so loud , yelling about how 'great' he was, messing with his stupidly easy puzzles, talking about how he's going to be a member of the Royal Guard...ha!" Chara laughs loudly and suddenly, startling Sans a bit, "Why would he ever get to that position? He can't protect himself , much less anyone else! What an idiot."

"Papyrus isn't an idiot."

"You just keep telling yourself that Sansy."

"yeah, i will ." He snaps, a little grumpy from exhaustion.

They tug on the leash harshly at his attitude. "Good."

"great." Sans stops suddenly, stiffening and glancing around, "..uh.."

Chara yanks him forward again, "What?!"

Sans tumbles to his hands and knees, picking himself back up and glancing over his shoulder as he brushes off his jacket, "...just thought i saw somethin'...guess not, though."

Giving a huff, the child continues to pull him along, "Of course not. Everyone else is dead , remember? Now….let's go walk around the evacuation site, and I'll tell you all about how they died, and what their screams sounded like~"

The shudder Sans gives isn't just borne from that statement. He feels like someone's gaze is crawling on his back.

Beady little eyes hidden beneath the snow watch the two pass by. A silent giggle follows their abrupt disappearance.

Sans shivers again.


	2. Didn't Really Think That Through

_**A/N: loool wow i can't believe ppl are still here**_

 _ **y'all should probably head over to AO3, you'll find all of part 1, part 2, and part 3 of JOH posted there**_

 _ **also other fics! tho those are in the 18+ category nheh**_

 _ **I'll keep posting here too but im totally gonna forget about again this site is kind've a pain**_

* * *

Once they get back home, Chara has him sit with them again on the couch as they watch more of the kill footage. Sans can hear Chara snickering every time the sound of a monster dissolving is heard. The skeleton clenches his fists, leaning his elbow onto his knees and slouching forward with his hood pulled up, cradling his broken arm. He doesn't know how he's going to deal with this. Every time he even thinks about getting mad, the image of Papyrus having to suffer through this pops up in his head, and all anger is crushed and replaced with an ever darkening depression.

At some point Chara slips away, leaving the TV going. Sans wants to shut off the stupid thing. Or more accurately, smash it into pieces. He figures that either action probably isn't allowed.

"..guh..!" Sans winces as his eye tries to flare up again, giving him a severe stab of pain. "need some ice or somethin'.." He gets up, wandering over to the front door and stepping out into the snow to grab a handful of it.

Suddenly he is jerked backwards by the collar, and back into the house. "Trying to run away are we?" Chara's voice is venomous.

Sans falls back on his seat, staring up at Chara with wide, panicked eyes. He realizes now how stupid of an idea that was. "no, no no...i w-wanted some snow, to...to put against.." He gestures to the permanently blackened eye socket. "it...it kinda aches..that's all."

"Interesting excuse, I made sure your eye doesn't work anymore Sansy. What am I gonna do now that I cannot trust you?" Chara's gaze is withering.

"Chara i was just getting some ice, why... why would i try to run away? it's pointless.."

"You tell me Sansy, you were the one rushing out the door."

"i was getting snow! it...i-it was a stupid idea but i made a promise not to run and…" Sans wheezes out a laugh, "i try really hard to keep those...believe it or not…"

"Tch, well, you want snow so badly, I suppose I can let you stay out here for a while. I have stuff I have to do anyway." They say as they hook the leash to the collar then tie it to the handle of the front door.

"whatever." Sans mutters, plopping down sulkily on the steps and grabbing a handful of snow, putting it directly in his blinded socket and sighing at the relief this brings his ache.

After a while, Chara comes back out and unties the leash from the door. "Time to come in Sansy, I cleaned all of upstairs! You have your own room back now! Aren't you happy?"

His room is better than the cupboard, which has been his 'bed' on the rare occasions that Chara goes to sleep, to ensure he doesn't try anything. "uh...y-yeah, actually.."

"And now I won't have to sleep on that lumpy couch anymore! This is a win win for both of us!" Chara says, overly cheery and smirking.

Sans is getting nervous. "...y-yeah.."

As they get to the top floor, Sans notices the red pieces of Papyrus's race car bed frame lying in the hallway. "Renovating is always fun~"

"...wh-what'd you do to Pap's bed..?" He's trying not to get angry, but seeing more of remnants of his brother being taken apart...it's hard to stay apathetic.

Chara giggles " What makes you think I want to sleep in a lame'o racecar bed?"

"...ya didn't have to destroy it..."

"Nonsense, I just took it apart. I completely renovated my new room~" Chara gestures to a couple plastic bags full of stuff, presumably all containing Papyrus's things.

"...what are you gonna do with it?"

"Trash it probably. I have no use for it"

"...i could...i could take it..."

"Hmm, I'll consider it, maybe." Chara opens Sans's bedroom door and unhooks the leash, shoving Sans inside. "I'll get you for dinner. Don't worry, I won't put anything in it this time. " They say over their shoulder as they walk back down.

Sans rubs at his neck, wincing and looking around at his room to inspect the 'renovations'.

Except for the dog bed lying in the center, it's completely empty. "...great."

From the kitchen, Sans suddenly hears a loud crashing noise, "Dammit!" Chara can be heard muttering to themselves incoherently soon after.

Sans flinches at the noise, shuffling over to the far wall and sitting down against it. He wraps his arms around his knees and rests his head against his thighs. "...guess this is just how it is, now.."

Another crash can be heard, followed by a growl of frustration. "Enough!"

Sans frowns, reluctantly getting up and shuffling over towards the door, exiting back into the hall. He leans over the stair rail, squinting and trying to find the cause of Chara's frustration. "..huh.."

He can see them seizing slightly. They fall to their knees, fists clenched and breathing heavily, "You can't win this~" They mutter, "I'm still stronger." They start to laugh, and then their body relaxes, laughter fading, "Nice try. " They slowly stand up, and head back into the kitchen, from which sounds of things being picked up can be heard

Well, that's confusing...

"..what..." Sans rubs at his temple, shutting his eyes as he tries to get his weary mind to think. "...who're you talkin' to, kid..."

He can still hear muttering, but it's quieter, and incoherent. Chara is still shambling about the kitchen, presumably returning to making dinner.

The kid is definitely nuts. Sans knows that. But he's never heard them talk to themselves before. And they were talking about...being stronger..? Stronger than who?

"...uh, Chara...?"

"...'t do any good!...ou're ...oice! Go back... sleep!"

Sans leans over further, sliding to the side and slightly descending the stairs, still clinging tightly to the rail. "...Chara?" He says, a bit louder.

Chara, in their surprise, drops the stupid pan once again. They pick it up, but they know Sans knows they heard. "Sans, you should be in your room!" They yell.

Wincing, Sans slowly shuffles back up the stairs and goes back to his room. Too much to hope for, he supposed…

Chara glowers. They shake their head and resume dinner; it's been delayed long enough, and Frisk's body constantly demands food.

Sans doesn't need to ask. He knows who Chara is fighting.

Is Frisk really in there somewhere? From the last several RESETs, Sans wouldn't have guessed there was any shred of the kid left. But they were strong enough to fight back, even if they didn't win this time. The skeleton presses his knuckles against his teeth, brow furrowing. Is there a chance that they could overpower Chara at all?

"...you're my last hope, kid...please keep fighting…" He whispers.


	3. That Pacifist

Time passes, and eventually Chara is calling Sans down for dinner, "Hurry up, before it gets cold!"

At least Chara doesn't sound mad anymore.

Sans slowly gets up and shuffles downstairs, hugging his jacket to himself and only looking up enough to keep from running into furniture. He plops down into a seat at the table and waits silently.

Chara is surprisingly mute as they serve what looks to be simple quesadillas. Where did they learn how to cook? Sans waits for a taunt, but they stay silent as they eat, as if Sans isn't even there.

Sans naturally wants to pry about the argument Chara had with 'themselves', but he wisely keeps his mouth shut. If Chara doesn't want to talk, then it's probably best not to try and start a conversation. The kid has the most insane mood swings, and can lash out at the slightest provocation.

Chara's eyes finally meet his, and they glare, then sigh, face going neutral "Speak your mind."

There is no good way to respond to that command.

"..uh..wh-whatcha talkin' about, kid..?"

"You have something to say to me, you're staring so intensely."

Sans quickly redirects his gaze - he'd been unconsciously searching for any signs of Frisk in Chara's face. "...s-sorry.."

Chara shrugs at his response, then turns away, tired.

Sans feels like he's sitting on very thin ice. It's making him nervous, and causing his eye to burn. "...hn.." He puts his fork down and holds his eye, wincing.

Chara eyes him idly. "There is nothing in it."

"y-yeah, i..i believe ya, kid, don't worry...ghh.." Sans puts his skull between both hands, grinding his heels into the floor as he tries to push past the pain.

"What's your deal?" Chara is looking at him curiously.

Sans isn't sure he wants Chara to know about the very vulnerable weak spot that is his blinded eye. Considering that it can hurt him without damaging his HP, he assumes it will only go bad places if he tells them about it. "...n-nothin'. don't worry about it."

Chara shrugs, the battle with Frisk having made them too exhausted to care. Sans finishes his meal and sits back, sighing as he feels his arm heal up and awaiting further instruction.

"Clean up the dishes." Chara says, not even glancing at him, having also finished with their food.

This silent behavior is more disturbing than their usual sadistic self. Sans hands shake a bit as he picks up the plates. "sure thing.."

Chara doesn't even acknowledge him, just stares off into space. Sans comes back over from the sink. He sees the blank look in Chara's eyes. Slowly he moves closer, leaning down and staring intently into their face. That expression, it's so familiar...

"...Frisk...?"

Chara immediately wakes from their stupor, glaring fiercely at Sans. "Excuse me?" Chara reaches out, grabbing his collar, and pulls him close. "What did you call me?"

Sans winces at his stupid self, cringing at their furious gaze. "nothin', b-boss, i..i d-don't know what you're talkin' about..." He isn't sure where 'boss' came from. Just that it's a natural instinct to use the title with someone in charge over him that's angry. He can't quite remember who, but...he thinks that's probably for the best.

Chara's glare gets fiercer, and they tighten their grip on Sans. "Because, I'm pretty sure my name is Chara. Right?"

Sans stumbles forward onto one knee as Chara jerks him closer. "y-yeah, of course..."

"When have I ever told you to call me by any other name?"

"you, uh..you haven't.."

Chara grins, eyes still furious. "That's right. And, what do you think will happen if I hear that name uttered from your mouth again?!"

Sans drops to his other knee as well, shutting his eyes. "you won't-"

Chara lifts him back up by the collar, forcing his head up. "Look at me! What do you think will happen?" They are practically growling every word. "ANSWER ME!"

"i-i don't know!" Sans chokes out. Every bone is suddenly rattling in terror. "i don't know i'm sorry, Chara ..! "

"I will reset this fucking world, kill everyone except for you and your brother, I will fuck up your eye and then I will force you to watch as I torture Papyrus until he IS BEGGING ME TO KILL HIM! Understand?"

Sans shrinks down further, staring at their unnaturally wide eyes as they start to turn black, "i-i'm sorry, boss, i-i...p-please...don't hurt him i-i'm s-sorry just...hurt m-me instead i'm the one that screwed up…" He's hanging limply in Chara's grip, hands holding his collar tightly as he tries to control his frightened stammering.

"I plan to." Chara growls as they begin to drag Sans into the kitchen, opening the fridge and pulling out the Tupperware bowl of poisoned spaghetti.

Sans falls to his seat on the floor, drawing his knees in and trying in vain to calm down. "wh-what are you.." He gives a cry of pain as his eye starts up again, although this time it sparks a bit.

Chara freezes as they see Sans' eye spark. That can't be good. "Are you trying to use your magic against me?" They say, walking towards Sans with bowl in hand.

"hnn.." Sans shuts his eye, holding his hand over it. "n-no, it...just acts on its own when...when I'm angry, or...or scared.."

Chara looks at him dubiously, not sure whether to believe him or not. "Fascinating." They finally say. They grab a fork from a drawer and wrap some of the spaghetti onto it, holding it out, "Eat it."

Sans is reluctant to open his mouth. His body recoils at the thought of suffering through the effects of the poison. He can't see any dust on it, but those buttercups are still crippling, "u-uh.."

"Now!" They hold the fork out insistently, glaring all the while.

Okay, this kid is pissed.

He's still slow opening his mouth, but he manages to choke down the tainted food when Chara shoves it into his throat.

"There, now go to your room, I don't want to see you for the rest of the night!"

Sans quickly gets to his feet, all too gladly running back up the stairs. He enters his room and closes the door behind him, leaning against it and panting.

"sh-shit...shit.." He collapses onto the dog bed, curling up into it and shivering. This is going to be another long night. He's hoping to at least be able to sleep through the worst of it.

Chara puts the bowl back into the fridge, energy completely spent. "Your body is so weak." They mutter as they trudge up into Papyrus's former room, lying on the mattress and falling asleep almost immediately.

Sans managed to sleep, but not without nightmares.

He wakes up, finding that he's rolled himself onto the floor in his sleep, (not that it's too much different from the dog bed) and stares at the ceiling.

He tries to sit up. But he can't. He can't move a single bone.

His breathing gets faster as he begins to panic. He can only move his eyes. What's going on?

"Saaaaans~ It's morning~" They sound overly cheerful.

'Shit shit shit..' He tries to say something in response. But he can't move his mouth at all.

"Sansy?" They open his door, and stand in the doorway. "You alive?"

His breathing picks up a bit, and his pupil shifts towards what he can see of the door.

"Oh, I'd forgotten about the paralysis symptom! Asriel told me about it. It didn't bother me - I was unconscious. And I couldn't feel anything. But you are, and you can, can't you, Sansy? Oh, this will be fun~" They get down on the ground, leaning over him and smiling menacingly.

Sans's pupil shrinks. He tries to summon all possible willpower to move away, but he can't. All that happens is a weak glow in his eye.

"First off, I can't have your eye coming back." They take out a knife, and play with it idly for a minute, teasing him.

"hff..hhff.." Sans's chest rises and falls more rapidly as he begins to panic and hyperventilate.

Chara gently traces the knife around his eye, humming softly. "Just tell me to stop at anytime~" They tease, giggling.

"hhhnn! hhh.." It's no use. They plunge the knife into his eye, with perfect accuracy, causing the spark to dissipate. "GGGGHHHHHH..!" Sans would be screaming right now if his body weren't frozen. As it were, all he can manage is the intensity of his breathing, and a weak, garbled sound from the back of his throat.

Chara laughs. "You make such funny noises Sansy, I wonder how much more I can force you to make~" They grab his hand, and inspect his fingers.

"khh..hnn.." Sans watches Chara as best he can from his limited view, wincing at the gentle touch on his palm. A few pained tears escape his good eye. Something else is leaking from his other.

Chara lightly traces their fingers over Sans' index finger, before grabbing it in their whole hand and bending it backwards slowly till they hear a snap .

Sans's back arches slightly. His wheezing becomes worse again. "hhhh! hhhh! ...nngh.."

Chara laughs some more, and checks his stats.

0.98...that was it? That was all that did?

Sans gives a quiet groan. Unbelievable.

"Amazing! Look how much more fun I can have when I get rid of my intent to kill. Guess you were right, Sansy~" Chara mocks as they trace their fingers over Sans' middle finger.

Dammit, that was the one he needed most right now...

..maybe if he stops making those 'funny noises' that amuse Chara so much, they'll get bored and stop. They slowly bend his finger back, but hold it just before the snapping point. Sans tenses, holding his breath and trying to brace himself. Suddenly they grab his pinky and quickly snap it, followed by his middle finger.

He nearly breaks. Nearly. But he manages to stay silent, although his breathing is erratic.

HP: 0.94.

"Oh Sansy, you don't need to muffle yourself, nobody exists to hear you but me~"

That was sort of the issue. No point in making any sound if there's no one to rescue him. Especially if said sounds were only pleasing this sadistic child.

"Unless you're holding back from me. I don't think you would want me to become bored, right? Lest I start dreaming of better toys~"

Sans tenses, then gives a weary sigh and relaxes himself. He stares dully at the ceiling. There's some glow-in-the-dark stars up there that Papyrus got him.

They're pretty dim by now.

Chara giggles, then snaps the last two fingers on his hand at once.

"gghhh! hff..hff.." Sans lets his voice loose as much as he can, wincing his eyes and shuddering. "..nngh..."

Chara snickers. "Now that's more like it Sansy boy, doesn't it feel much better to just let it out?"

He gives as much of a nod as he can manage. Which is to say, nothing. "..mmhm."

Chara grips his freshly healed wrist, tracing it lightly with their fingers and taking their time.

'oh God, they're not gonna...? ...they are, shit..'

Sans starts trembling in spite of himself. This is going to take more than 0.02 HP.

Chara chuckles. "I can feel you trembling~" They grip his arm with their other hand. "This is going to take more strength, but I think I can do it~"

Sans eyes flicker over from his wrist to Chara's face, conveying as much pleading as he can.

With a twist of their hands, they snap his wrist, then they check his stats.

Sans screams as much as he is able, back arching up as his body tries to absorb the pain as best it can. "hhhhnnn! ngghh...nn..hff.."

HP: 0.73.

Chara giggles. "Time for the other hand~"

"nn! nnnggh..!" Sans desperately tries to lock eyes with Chara, to convey his silent begging for MERCY. He doesn't know how much more of this he or his body can take..

"Isn't this fun Sansy?~" Chara says as they pick up his hand and trace their fingers along his index finger.

What was he supposed to answer? Yes, to please their sadistic little SOUL, or no, to stay honest and avoid punishment for lying? Was there a right answer?

"...kh.." Sans gives a sigh, trying to pretend he enjoys the gentler touch of his torturer.

They don't seem to care for a response, as they just grab his finger and promptly snap it.

"HHHHHHHHNNNN!" It hurt only as bad as last time, but maybe louder screams are what Chara wants..?

Chara giggles. "Are you faking? Cause If you are I will have to get you to scream like that for real~" They then grab the three end fingers in response.

There was no fucking right answer.

Sans feels a frustrated tear escape. He doesn't even care. He just wants this to end. Chara smiles at his distress, then bends all three fingers back, snapping them simultaneously.

Sans's body gives a violent jolt as the intense wave of pain rolls through it. His breathing stops as his weakened mind struggles to cope with comprehension. He doesn't make a sound, too shocked from the pain.

HP: 0.52.

His pupil rolls back as he starts to black out.

"Ah ah ah~. Did I say you could sleep?"

He genuinely tries to stay awake, but his vision is going dark. "..nn..."

Chara shoves a leftover piece of monster candy into his mouth. HP: 0.88.

Sans gives a groan as he is jerked back from unconsciousness. A few of his fingers have healed, but a bit of the poison is also removed.

"..Ch..Char...a..?"

Chara grips his wrist with their hands. "Yes Sansy?"

"..wh...what'did...whatdidi...do..?"

Chara smirks, and snaps his wrist. "I'm sorry, I couldn't understand you~"

"gaahhh! n-no, no!" Sans shuts his eyes and whimpers at the pain.

Chara laughs. "This is so much better now that you can talk~"

Sans groans as the sharpness of the pain dulls to an intense ache. "..p..pl...ple.."

Chara takes their knife out of San's eye. "Hmmm, if I cut you, will you bleed again? What is it anyway, ketchup, blood? Knowing you it's probably fake blood~"

Sans winces at the knife, eyes widening at Chara's question. "n-n..d-don't.." He whispers. Chara slowly cuts into his chest, watching closely as he has no flesh, and they are curious as to how it cuts. Red seeps through his shirt, which soaks it up immediately.

Sans shuts his eyes tightly as he feels himself bleed, but it's not blood. DETERMINATION seeps out from his bones.

Chara takes some of it in their finger, and brings it to their tongue, "Fascinating. Who knew you had any determination at all~"

Sans lets out a harsh breath through his teeth. "y-you don't know wh-what y-you're d-doin', k-kid.."

"Then tell me~"

"th-that...th-that c-can't...b-be p-put b-back, y-you're.." Sans winces, opening his eyes and staring at the ceiling as he feels a critical part of himself seep out- his ability to stay hopeful amidst so many RESETS, his belief in himself, and his will to live. "y-you're g-gonna k-kill me..."

"Hmmm, I suppose you're right." They say with a sigh, then shove another piece of the monster candy in his mouth.

Sans chokes on it, letting his head roll to the side as his HP is lifted again. But..

HP: 0.9/0.9

His eyes widen - he lost ten percent of his total health?!

"...sh-shit.."

"Wow, you were right. Damn, looks like I gotta be more careful when I torture you." Chara says with a laugh.

'When'. Because it's going to be a constant occurrence.

Sans feels his SOUL shudder in dread.


	4. This Isn't Important to You at All Right

Sweat forms on his forehead as the fever from the poison finally breaks. He shuts his eyes, willing for all of this to be over. He can't handle much more.

"I'll tell ya, I slept wonderfully last night. Paps bed is suuuper comfy!"

Sans gives them a weak glare, the shadows under his eyes seeming to stand out more.

That's when Chara takes out a familiar red scarf and a pair of scissors, which they set down next to them. "And what a cozy looking rag I found while I was cleaning up in there as well~"

Sans's eyes widen in horror. He tries to sit up, but can't even move his shoulders. "n-no! n-no don't cut...p-please.."

"I dunno, you made me really angry last night, and I am not very forgiving.." They say as they pick up the scissors.

"Ch-Chara no! i-i'm sorry, i-i'm so sorry i didn't...i w-wasn't th-thinking..!"

"Well, maybe this will help you think better in the future~" They go to the edge of the scarf, and cut two inches off of it.

Sans gives a strangled cry. "Chara p-please i-i'll...i'll do anything! a-anything you want j-just please...!"

"If you can grab it from me you can have it~" Chara taunts as they slowly brought the scissors up to the fabric.

Sans gives a sob, in spite of trying his hardest not to, "Ch-Chara...i already...i a-already l-lost the t-tape i need...i can't do this without..without some piece of him, please ...i'll...i'll never ask for anything again, i-i swear…"

Chara laughs, and finishes the cut, watching as the piece falls to the floor.

"Ch-Chara p-please! i need...i n-need my b-brother, i..." Sans shuts his eyes, tears rolling down his cheekbone as he starts to give up on reasoning with the being that only ever wants to hurt him.

"If you want the scarf so badly, you are going to have to take it~" They repeat, raising the scissors once again.

He can't. He hasn't stopped trying to move since he first woke up. The scarf will be in shreds before he can even lift a finger. A miserable sob is all he can give in response.

"Tell you what, if you sleep outside tonight, I'll give you another piece of candy. Bad dogs sleep outside anyway. Deal?" They say, smirking.

Sans shifts his jaw, looking away from them and giving a shaky sigh before nodding, "d-deal.."

Chara takes out the last piece of candy, and places it on his mouth, then starts slowly cutting into the fabric again. Sans bites down on it, absorbing it faster. More of the poison goes away. He sits up, more than ready to snatch the scarf away. But the kid is much faster than he is.

Chara dangles it just out of his reach. "Come and grab it!~"

Sans has to brace himself up on one hand, shaking for a moment before snatching his arm forward.

Chara lifts it out of his reach then cackles. "You gotta try harder than that~"

Sans gives a bit of a growl before darting forward again, faster this time.

Chara jumps out of the way. "Oops, too slow~"

Sans falls forward as his legs give out, still mostly immobile from the poison. "hhff...hff...c-c'mon, k-kid, i-i'm too weak to p-play with you right n-now.."

"Nonsense Sansy~ Your brother's scarf is on the line~"

The skeleton swallows and pushes himself back to his feet. He's very unsteady, and so braces his hand against the wall to hold his balance. "..j-just..j-just give me a second, then.."

Chara holds up the scissors. "I don't think you have a second."

"sh-shit.." Sans takes in a breath and rushes the kid, hand outstretched.

He is able to grab it from their hand before Chara can pull it away, causing them to jerk on empty air and thus making them lose their balance and fall to the floor.

Sans quickly wraps the scarf around his neck, over the collar, and hesitantly approaches the grumpy child on the ground. "y-you okay, boss?"

They are laughing, and they roll onto their back "Nice one Sansy~"

He nearly gives a small smile, but his expression stays quietly miserably. "..uh, thanks..."

Suddenly, they whip their foot out, tripping Sans and causing him to fall. "Don't you know better than to play rough with children~"

Sans's head smacks harshly into the floor. He rolls over and grips his skull, panting and groaning. He feels more fragile than ever, now, with his maximum health depleted.

It's so unfair. But he can't say so.

"...s-sorry, boss...won't happen again.." He pushes himself up to his hands and knees, taking a moment to catch the breath that he just lost.

Chara is smirking as they stand, dusting themselves off "Damn right"

"..s-sorry." Sans tightly clutches at the scarf, scared that it might get taken from him.

"Look at yourself, you are so pathetic" Chara taunts "Can't save you brother, can't save your friends, and now you can't even save yourself"

Sans buries his face in the red fabric, fighting back tears and breathing in the lingering scent of comfort. "i-i kn-know.."

Chara scoffs, then is silent for a moment before asking "What did you mean by 'the script'?"

"...h-huh?" Sans dares to look up from the scarf.

"You said something about me not following the script. What exactly does that mean?"

Sans gives a sniff before shuffling back, finding his bed and curling up in it. "th-there's, uh...certain...certain events that happen with every RESET. genocide, neutral, merciless, pacifist...they each have their own lines. "don't you know how to greet a new pal? puzzles might be fun if you try them." ..that kinda number, you know?"

"Yeah, I remember things repeating"

"not just..lines, though, there's certain..set paths, that you're not supposed to venture from. with all the routes, you have to confront Asgore after bein' judged, and either kill him or spare him." Sans closes his eyes. "and then suddenly, everything stops."

"It would stop cause we reset" Chara sits down.

"yeah. if you RESET. if you kill everyone, you don't have a choice. but..other routes, you can go back to the surface and keep letting time move forward."

"But then we reset, we did each time choose to reset you know." Chara looked dubious, this line of questioning not as interesting as they'd hoped.

"what was i supposed to do? if you knew how in tune i was to the RESETS, who knew what you'd do. it was for Pap's sake that i'd say the same old lines, follow the same route, react the same way...the less he knows about the timelines, the better."

"Surely you could have known that we would get bored after a while, right?"

"i thought you'd just go back to the pacifist route, to let us go back to the surface and just live, because at least it'd be something new." Sans looks down at the scarf, holding it closer. "you can obviously act nice, so everyone would just think you were Frisk-" Sans shuts his mouth immediately, putting both hands over it and staring at Chara. That had been a mistake.

"What makes you think that I want to be anything like them?" Chara sneered, standing up and walking towards Sans

Sans curls away as much as he can in the tiny bed. "..i-i don't kn-know, i...i-it was a r-really dumb idea..."

Chara grabs him by the collar, and by extension, the scarf "Yeah, it really was" They lift him to his feet

Sans grabs the scarf with both hands, choking and shutting his eyes. He wishes he wasn't so tiny that absolutely everyone could pick him up. "i-i'm s-sorry, b-boss.."

"If you were SORRY , you wouldn't have DONE it"

Sans is clinging to the scarf like a security blanket, trying to hide his face in it. "i-it w-was a-an a-accident , b-boss..!"

"To think you would learn your lesson, but I guess not..let me set this straight: Frisk doesn't exist , has never existed , and never will exist, do you understand me!?"

Sans nods, drawing in his shoulders and shivering.

"y-y-y-yeah.."

His bones are rattling.

"I'm so tempted to just throw you down the stairs and watch as your HP flows out of you, and then reset and make your brother my pet!"

"Ch-Chara n-no, p-please...! i-i'll do anything y-you want just please d-don't hurt Papyrus...!"

"And yet, you keep pissing me off !"

"i don't mean to!"

Chara throws him down. "I guess I'll have to teach you some better manners.." Chara says, taking out their knife.

Sans tries to scoot away, eyes wide in terror as he looks at the blade that's caused him so much pain in the past and is going to in the future. His left eye starts to spark, somehow the magic in it still alive, as he starts to panic again.

Without meaning to, Sans suddenly teleports away, leaving the room empty except for Chara.

The child stands stunned for a moment. Then they clutch their knife tightly. That damn skeleton.


	5. Well Shit

Sans appears in the Secret Lab, dropping onto one of the beds in the main room. He bounces off and hits the floor, giving a weak, stammered swear as he slowly gets to his feet and looks around, holding his magic eye. "...wh-what...? h-how..." Sans realizes what has happened and begins to panic, eyes widening as he turns in circles and begins rushing down hallways, searching for a phone.

Chara takes in a breath. "Welp, now he has done it!" Chara sits down, and closes their eyes, preparing to reset.

Sans's palm smacks against the wall as he finally finds a working phone, punching in the number to Frisk's- "Chara's. Frisk doesn't..doesn't exist..." -Chara's cell and dropping to his knees as he holds the phone against his skull.

Chara's concentration is broken by their phone ringing in their pocket. They smirk as they answer; this ought to be good. "Sansy~ I was just about to reset~"

"Chara i didn't mean it i didn't mean it i don't know what the hell happened but it wasn't on purpose i swear to God i'll be back i'll come home i promise don't RESET don't RESET i didn't want to run away it wasn't on purpose!"

"Oh it was an accident it was an accident waaaahh waaahh waahhh..." Chara mocks, rolling their eyes. "There is nothing you can say that can pacify me now, so say goo-" Chara cuts themselves off as they get a much better idea.

They can hear muffled crying from the other end of the line. "i w-wouldn't leave y-you like that, b-boss, i swear i j-just...you w-were scarin' me s-so bad, i.." He sniffs and puts his skull against the wall, shutting his eyes and shivering. "i'm in the True Lab, i-i'll...i'll just f-find the elevator a-and be r-right back to yah i s-swear.."

"It's alright, Sansy boy! It wasn't your fault, was it, now? Don't worry, I'll come get you."

Sans breathes out a sigh of relief, "okay...o-okay...i'll wait, th-"

"Oh, but wait...I think this is a good opportunity for a game! What do you think?"

He feels himself grow nauseous with anxiety. "wh-what...wh-what k-kinda game, b-boss?"

"Hide and seek, of course! I know you're in the secret lab, but it's a fairly big place. There's lots of good hiding spots for you, I'm sure! Oh, but I like a challenge, Sans. So I have to give you motivation to stay hidden, don't I? How about this...if I find you before morning... I'll take your other eye, how about that?"

Sans freezes, his eyes opening and staring at the wall. "wh..wh-what..?"

"You heard me Sans, and hey, look on the bright side! You get quite the head start, as I still have to walk there. See you soon, bone boy, or for your sake, not until morning~" Chara laughs and the line goes dead.

Sans is frozen, listening to the ominous hum of the dead line. He looks around to see if there's a working clock, to try and check the time, but there's nothing. His breathing gets faster as he slowly backs up, then turns around and starts sprinting through the halls.

It takes Chara longer than they'd have liked to arrive and open the forsaken elevator doors, but when they do, they naturally announce their arrival. "Saaaaansyy boooy~ Ready or noooot, here I come~" They sing out, gleefully skipping through the halls.

Sans hears the demon's voice from the other side of the lab, where he's hiding behind a large television set. He holds Papyrus's scarf closer to his face, shutting his eyes and trying to stay calm and silent.

Chara slows once they get to the main area, and then, they turn on their hunter's instincts, prowling as if back in the ruins, searching for cowardly Froggits. They keep their footsteps quiet, and they listen for any sound of shuffling or breathing.

Sans stays still as a stone, eyes wide as he stares at his feet and listens to the slow walk of his predator. He's too weak to run if he's found. And worse, he'll never know if Chara has already found him, because they'll just toy with him, drawing closer, and then further, and back again, tormenting him by playing with his fear.

He feels the bones of his wrist start to rattle, and he quickly grabs it, holding it tightly.

Hours pass. Sometimes Chara hums, sometimes they stay still. They had been taking their time, but now sunrise is approaching and they haven't found him.

"Damn." They curse, now starting to search harder.

Sans had changed spots once or twice during the long night, but he never dared to go very far. What little energy he had was spent, and he didn't want to risk passing out in the middle of a hallway. He hasn't had a proper sleep in ages, first because Chara purposefully sleep-deprived him, and second because once he finally could sleep, there were always horrible nightmares that woke him up.

To say that sleep has been tempting, even while in terrible danger, is an understatement.

Sans awkwardly tries to adjust himself to fit better in the small back cupboard. In spite of being a skeleton he's never exactly been skinny, and that makes certain hiding places..uncomfortable, to say the least. He gives a shaky sigh and leans his head back, resting his arms over his stomach. "nearly there." He whispers.

Footsteps.

Chara had entered the same room as him. However, they still hadn't seen him, or became aware of his presence.

Sans opens his eyes, stiffening and looking out the crack in the cupboard. Shit...shit shit shit they're so close ..

Chara checks their phone. "Damn, 20 minutes left.."

20 minutes. 20 minutes. He can do this. He can stay silent and still for just a bit longer.

Sans shuts his eyes and prays to whoever might be listening that he makes it.

Chara starts checking the cupboards. He has to be close, Chara can feel it.

'no no no no no no no no please no!' Sans holds his breath, curling up tighter.

There it was, the shuffling they were looking for. They fight the urge to smile as they make a show of looking at their phone. "18 minutes.." They then turn and walk out of the room, out into the hallway so that they can snicker to themselves.

...they've left.

Sans slowly raises his head, holding his shin bones tightly and turning his head to look out the cupboard.

"...i can do this.." He reminds himself in a shaky whisper.

Thirteen, anxiety-filled minutes pass. There's no sound to be heard.

"Five minutes." The call can be heard from farther down the hall.

He's close. He's so, so close to getting through this.

They find amusement in calling out how much time was left, being the bearer of false hope. "4 minutes, 3 minutes, 2 minutes one..."

Then, they start counting down from 60 seconds. It takes them 45 seconds to get back to the room.

They keep counting "15, 14, 13, 12, 11, 10..." Chara the cupboard containing Sans.

...wait. Their voice is getting...closer…

Sans's eyes widen in horror, "..n-no, p-please no…"

"9,8,7,6,5,4,3..." They are right in front of the cupboard now. They allow a victorious smile to don their face. "2, 1." They open the door. "Good morning Sansy, I believe you owe me your eye~"

Sans is pressed as far back against the inside of the closet as he can be, "...k-kid, w-wait, m-maybe...m-maybe we c-can work somethin' out, h-here?" He tries to grin, failing miserably, "i mean...h-havin' me b-blind will be a...a r-real pain, p-probably...uh..s-so h-how's about we j-just...j-just t-talk this over..?"

"Is this you backing out of the rules of the game? I dunno, you got yourself into this mess."

"Y-yeah...but...i-i'm n-not...i'm not g-gonna be m-much good if you have to...lead me around, everywhere, and...i-i'll be..tripping over stuff, a-and...i-it'll just b-be a m-mess, y'know?"

Chara considers. "Well, I suppose I could spare your eye... if you beg for my mercy..."

Sans stays huddled up inside the cupboard, "..r-really? that's..that's all ya w-want?"

"You test my patience? You want to keep your eye do you not?"

They sound like Toriel, sometimes, with the way they talk. It hurts.

"s-sorry, i-i…" Sans squints, fidgeting with his hands as he tries to think of how he's supposed to begin this whole pleading thing, "u-uh….s-sorry i-i'm k-kinda..p-put on th-the s-spot right now…"

"I guess you don't want your eye bad enough if you don't know how to plead for it." Chara points to the floor. "You can start by kneeling, then we can see how far down you can go~"

Sucking in a breath, Sans slowly pulls himself out of the cupboard, staying on his knees on the floor, "i-i..Ch-Chara, i…" His eyes squint up as a desperate half-smile crosses his face, "i-i kn-know i-i've b-been a...a p-pretty u-useless s-sack of sh-shit, l-lately, b-but…" His fingers knot together, and his composure begins to break. "d-don't do th-this t-to me...p-please, i-i...i-i'll d-do b-better, i-i p-promise.."

"Hmm, I'm sure you can do better, Sansy. Convince me not to take out your remaining eye." For emphasis, they take out their knife, and idly play with it.

Sans watches the blade anxiously, his already (mostly) dead eye aching sharply at the memory of how it felt inside his skull. "...p-please, k-kid…" He starts to imagine how it would be to live as Chara's pet, blind. Never being able to see them coming. Being given impossible tasks that Chara would gleefully punish him for not completing. Having to be guided around by the demon, most likely kept on a leash. Purposefully being tricked into walking into things so that he wouldn't trust himself to move an inch on his own.

Sans shudders. "i-i know i d-deserve it, b-but...i j...this whole timeline is...is bad enough w-without me bein' blind, y-y'know? i d…" He swallows, shutting his eyes, "..i-i'm...i'm scared , Chara, i'm...i'm terrified to lose my sight so please... please please don't blind me don't do it, please...i'm scared i'm really...r-really scared don't do it please don't do it.."

Chara smirks. "Now that, is more genuine." They lean down, a gentle smile on their face. "You have managed to convince me Sansy, I'll spare your eye~"

Sans looks up, tears still lining the inside of his socket. "y-you...r-really?"

"Yep, you may stand up now~" Chara straightens themselves as well.

Sans shakily gets to his feet, shoulders shaking, " th-thank y-you ...th-thank- "

His words of thanks are interrupted as Chara suddenly grabs his collar, gentle smile turned menacing, and shoves the knife into his good eye. "NOT!~" They are cackling mockingly.

Sans yells out in agony, pushing away from Chara and holding his hands over his eye. He's hyperventilating, growing dizzy from the lack of oxygen. He opens his fingers, trying to see Chara, trying to see his hand, trying to see anything .

...blackness. Nothing but blackness.

"y-you…" Sans stares ahead, not having any reason to look any other way. A weak, broken grin appears on his face through the tears, "..r-really…'pulled the wool o-over m-my e-eye' o-on that o-one, k-kid.." He wheezes out a laugh that dissolves into a single sob as he slumps back against the cabinet, his trembling gradually dying out as the combination of pain and exhaustion finally make him pass out.

Chara looks at the unconscious skeleton, rolls their eyes, and drags him to one of the beds a few rooms down. "Come on you big baby, you stayed awake for your other eye." Once they reach the beds, they hoist Sans onto one, then they lay on another and nap.

Sans sleeps surprisingly well.

In spite of his emotional torment, the smell from Papyrus's scarf keeps him calm throughout the morning, tricking his subconscious mind into thinking that his brother is right next to him, that he's safe. When the afternoon dawns and the skeleton opens his eyes to see nothing but darkness, he shuts them again, rolling over to his other side and hoping to fall asleep again. He doesn't want to face this reality just yet. Or ever, really.

"Saaansy...time to wake uuup! Rise and shine lazybones~"

Sans shuts his eyes tighter and hugs his arms around his stomach, hiding his face in Papyrus's scarf.

"Sans, time to wake up." Charas voice is sharper.

For a moment Sans just curls up tighter, but he then slowly sits up, facing away from Chara as he rests on the edge of the bed, head down. He can hear jangling as Chara attaches the leash to his collar. "Time to head home~"

Slowly he stands up, fighting to urge to stretch out his arms and instead shoving his hands in his pockets as always. Yeah, this would be a fun walk…

They drag him throughout the lab, and stop when they enter the elevator. They hum as the doors close, and the elevator takes them up. Sans follows silently. His thoughts are occupied with one-sided conversations with his brother, trying to apologize for screwing up so badly, for not saving him, for being such a lazy bones and never being where he should have...

He's never been away from Papyrus this long before. His very SOUL aches to be with him again. Even if just for a second.


	6. Ever Lower

The elevator opens, and their walk continues. Sans is only able to tell where they are based on the temperatures of each area. The familiar cold of Snowdin is a helpful hint that he's nearly home. Maybe Chara will just leave him to drown in misery on his own for awhile.

'ha. yeah, fat chance, pal.'

As they enter Snowdin, Chara decides they are bored of Sans's silence, and begin leading him into rocks and trees, laughing every time he falls.

When Sans hits the ground for the fifth time, he doesn't immediately pick himself back up. He stays kneeling in the snow, staring blankly at the ground and not moving.

He doesn't want to keep going.

"Oh Sans, is this you giving up again? Does your brother no longer seem worth it?"

Sans starts shaking. He has to keep going. But it's so hard. It's so, so hard...

After a few moments, Sans slowly gets back up, putting his trembling hands back in his pockets.

"Thattaboy~" Chara pulls the leash, and continues on till they finally reach the house. Chara pulls them both in, then unhooks the leash. "Home sweet home~"

Sans slowly steps in, feeling for the wall and leaning heavily against it. He puts a hand to the place on his skull that he hit on a rock during one of his many falls. It aches, but he doesn't feel any cracks.

Sans slides to his seat and buries his face in Papyrus's scarf again. It's officially the only thing he has left of his brother.

"Sans." Chara prompts. "I don't recall having you do the dishes recently. Get to it. Now." They order.

"...sure thing, boss." At least it's his house. He knows his way around.

And he'd put the dishes in the sink last night before he'd royally fucked up, so...

Sans gets back to his feet, feeling his way around the edge of the room and into the kitchen. He runs his hands along the counter until he finds the sponge. He flips on the water and begins cleaning, staying silent.

"You missed a spot." Chara says, right in his ear, as they plunk a dish he had just washed back into the sink.

Sans jumps, falling to the side and dropping a plate on the floor. He lands hard on his seat, one hand clinging to the counter top and the other braced against the floor. He winces as he hears the glass shatter.

"...shit..."

"If this continues then we wont have any plates left, then you will be eating off the floor!"

'it's your fucking fault kid and you fucking know it.'

Sans stares ahead for a moment.

"...sorry boss."

"Well, don't just stand there like an idiot, clean it up!"

The venom in Chara's voice makes him flinch a bit.

"...sorry, boss." Sans crawls forward and begins grabbing up the shards.

"Make it quick!"

Sans curls away from Chara's voice, scooting back a bit as if that could keep him safer.

"Don't move away from the glass you idiot, clean it up!"

"..y-you're k-kinda scarin' me, boss.."

"Well, stop being clumsy and do what I tell you!"

"i-i'm tryin' my b-best.."

"Well, do your best faster."

Sans shuts his eyes. "...it's been a...long day, boss, could...do you think you could lighten up on me...? just a bit? k-kinda...barely keeping it together, over here.."

"Would you rather I reset?"

He lowers his head. Worth a shot, anyway.

"..n-no, boss...i-i'm sorry.." Sans moves forward again, trying to scrape up all the glass pieces in sweeping motions.

Sans hears Chara step backwards and hit the wall. They grunt in surprise. "Really? Now?" They mutter.

Sans pauses for a second, then dares to lift his head. "...uh..y-you doin' alright, boss..?"

"Don't you dare s-say a w-wor-rd..!" Sans can hear them run out of the kitchen, then fall to the floor, muttering in the living room.

Sans starts dumping the glass shards into the trash can, eventually wandering out into the living room. He braces one hand on the couch arm to ground himself.

"kid...? you...y-you alright...?"

Chara is breathing heavily as they try to regain control. "Go d-do the dishes!" They say through clenched teeth

"you..y-you sure you don't need help? you...you're not lookin' so good..or...soundin' good, anyway..."

"You can't even see!" Chara takes a deep breath, and stands up, clenching and unclenching their fists, having regained control. "I think you should be less worried about me, and more worried for yourself. You disobeyed my order.."

Sans steps back, in the direction of the kitchen. "s-sorry, b-boss i...just was worried.."

"You should be more worried about following orders. I ought to confiscate your brother's scarf as punishment..."

The small skeleton shakes his head. "n-no, i-it...it w-won't happen again, b-boss. y-you d-don't gotta..do that." He clutches the scarf protectively.

"Are you telling me no?" Chara steps closer.

Sans backs away from the voice, tripping over the door frame and falling to the ground. "n-no b-boss.."

Chara lifts him by the scarf. "It's like you want me to take this from you, begging me to take it away where you will never see it again. Do you really hate him that much?"

Sans shuts his useless eyes. "i-i was j-just worried, b-boss!"

"I'm a big kid." They say, pitching their voice to mimic a younger child. "I can take care of myself." They drop him and bring their voice back to normal. "Finish the dishes." They say, leaving to go and sit on the couch.

Breathing out a sigh of relief, Sans gets back to his feet and feels his way towards the sink. He can't mess up like that again. He can hear Chara muttering to themselves, but their words are drowned out by the running water.

Sans tries to ignore them. Chara is insane. He's going to have to learn to just ignore everything that isn't an order.

Chara starts to make dinner as Sans finishes the dishes. He hears hard pellets hitting the bottom of the bowl and assumes they are making cereal. That is until he hears the bowl being set on the ground, and he's suddenly pushed down.

Sans hits the floor with a grunt, squinting blindly at the ground and sitting back on his heels, "uhm, what's, uh...what's happenin', here…?" He looks up in what he thinks is Chara's direction.

"Extra punishment for pissing me off. Feel in front of you and eat."

He slowly reaches out his hand and feels and hears his bony fingers clinking against something metal. He picks it up and runs his hands over it, but it doesn't hit him until he senses the texture of dry dog food. "...Chara…"

"What?" They snap. "Is there a problem?" He can hear the smirk in their voice.

"...dog food? really? i can't...i can't eat that it's not...i dunno i can even absorb it without-"

"Are you arguing with me? Only good pets get good food."

"n-no, but i really don't know if i c-"

"Eat it. Now!"

His shoulders drop, and he picks out one of the pieces, testingly putting it in his mouth and chewing. It tastes like...well. Nothing. It doesn't really have a taste. But it's stale, and...cold?

Chara notes his confusion, "Don't you know why it's so cold?"

"...uh.."

"I got it from the shed, you know. That's where I got the bowl and the bed, too. Your brother has been so helpful in giving me all the right supplies." Chara crouches down, pushing up his chin so his blind gaze is meeting theirs, "I may not have even thought of this punishment if not for how convenient he made it. I'll make sure to taunt him with that, when I RESET and make him watch me do this to you all over again~"

"Ch-Chara no leave him alone don't-"

"If you really want to keep him safe…" Chara violently shoves his head into the bowl, bracing their foot over his skull as they stand up, "Then you'll be a good boy and finish your food like you're supposed to! "

Sans flinches, getting the hint when the pressure on his neck doesn't relent. His eyes shut tightly as he eats the tasteless bits directly from the bowl, hands braced against the floor on either side of it. He coughs and chokes at the bitter aftertaste, but Chara doesn't step back until he's eaten every last bite.

"Good, now clean up your mess."

He wipes his sleeve over his mouth, shuddering and picking up the bowl, feeling around the floor and standing up when he doesn't find any stray pieces. He carries it over to the sink, washing it out and setting it out to dry. There's a tight feeling forming in his chest, and he stands there, slowly wiping his hands dry.

Chara dumps it back into the sink. "It is still dirty." They mock, and they set their own dish in as well. Then they head into the living room.

"gh…" Sans braces his hand over his chest, shutting his eyes tightly. He takes in deep breaths and lets them out slowly, and eventually the ache recedes. This time he doesn't try to rush. Might as well spend more time at the sink than anywhere near them.

After a few minutes, Chara comes back into the kitchen. "When you are done we can have movie night until it's bedtime, so hurry up!"

"..wh-what're we watchin', boss?"

Chara scoffs. "All we have are those CD's. I suppose we should make the trip to the garbage dump soon...nah, not today. Anyway, finish up, I'm getting bored of waiting."

Sans sighs and gives a dull nod, putting the last dish on the rack and shutting off the water . "alright..."

Chara grabs his arm and leads him to the couch, before putting in a CD and turning the TV on. Sans slouches against the couch back, gaze trained on the floor. He's not looking forward to this. Once everything is up and running, Chara sits on the couch right next to Sans, and they lean against his arm

Sans stiffens, shifting uncomfortably as he waits to hear which death he's going to sit through.

"Oooh, what's this? I don't remember this.."

Alphys's voice can be heard. "T-this is going t-to sound bad n-no matter how I p-put this, a-and I'm sorry you had to f-find out like this, b-but, I just can't live anymore.."

Sans's brow furrows. "wh-what..what's happening?"

"Oh this is going to be good!" Chara says gleefully.

Sans shifts back, not liking the lizards tone. "Alph...what're you doin'?"

"I-I know I played a part in getting lots of monsters to safety, but n-now that im n-no longer n-needed...All my friends are either dead, or missing. I-I never even got to tell her that I-I-I..." A sniffle can be heard. "I l-l-left people b-behind. I have lied to everyone. I-I just can't take it anymore. By the time anyone gets this, I'll be dead, I'll have thrown myself into the abyss in Waterfall. Whoever is w-watching this, I hope you don't mourn for me, I'll be happier this way. Goodbye.." Then the footage shuts off.

Sans leans his head forward into his hands, curling up and trembling a bit. "Alph...yah didn't...you weren't useless.."

"Wow, and to think I thought hanging was overdone. Suicide by falling seems to be a common around here am I right?" Chara says, laughing.

"being murdered isn't suicide." Sans grumbles.

Chara holds their hands up. "Hey, she killed herself, her dust is unfortunately not on my hands."

"you took everything from her. Undyne, Mettaton, Asgore...the people she loved..." Sans shakes his head. "...sometimes the only reason you keep going is because of the people you love, and...when they're gone, y-you.."

"Aww, Sansy, don't worry. You're not as weak as her. At least you tried to fight me. She killed herself before I even found the evacuation party~" Chara coos, hugging Sans's arm.

Sans pulls his arm free. "i was too late."

"Better late than never~" Chara sings, grabbing his arm again.

"d-don't.." Sans leans away. "...d-don't..."

Chara pulls him back, then lays their head in his lap. "You know, I've never felt safer than now, being one of the only two people in the underground, and the other is blind and won't kill me in fear for his brother~"

Sans tries to hold still, to lean back as far as possible to avoid touching them. "...y-yeah. must be nice.."

"Open your eyes."

"why-?" Sans stops, giving a shaky sigh and complying. He doesn't have a right to ask questions.

Chara is silent for a moment , then they get up, and suddenly throw Sans to the floor by the collar. The skeleton gives a grunt, pushing himself up and rolling onto his back. He stays on the floor. There's no sense in fighting.

"You can get up now." They don't sound angry. "Get back on the couch."

Sans obeys, shifting up onto his knees and climbing back onto the sofa. "can i, uh...kn-know what i did wrong, to deserve that..?" He asks meekly.

"Nothing, I was just trying to see if your eye sparked."

"oh." Sans nods as if that's completely fair, curling up and resting his chin on his knees, hugging his legs.

Chara puts another CD in and leans against Sans, their head resting on his shoulder. The footage that plays is mostly Chara hunting.

As the recording goes on, Chara's exhaustion from fighting Frisk takes over, and they yawn, sitting up and stretching. "Well Sansy, time to fulfill your end of the bargain~"

His eye twitches and he turns his head slightly in their direction, "huh?"

"You are sleeping outside remember?" The child giggles.

Sans winces, "oh yeah...right.." So much for a warm night on the dog bed, hah.

"Stand up and turn around~"

Slowly he gets to his feet, guessing their location and turning his back to them.

"Oh, I don't think you'll be needing this." His jacket is yanked off of his back, leaving him in his t-shirt and Papyrus's scarf.

He feels them tie his arms behind his back, then lead him outside. They tie the rope to the doorknob. Sans plops himself down on the steps, giving a bit of a shiver. Snowdin cold wasn't too bad, with a coat, but now it's leaving a bit of frost in his bones-

Chara's hand locks around the scarf, and Sans jerks back, "no!" He tenses, doing his best to scramble in what he assumes is the opposite of their direction, "n-no, not...not the scarf, please.."

"Let me take it."

"b-boss please i j..i j-just got it d-don't take it so soon.."

"Good puppies get rewarded, bad puppies get punished. Let me take it." He feels them grab at it again.

He falls back further, giving an alarmed gasp as he falls off the porch, back hitting the snow, "boss p-please t-take an..a-anything else, not this, please please i'm begging ya don't t-take Papyrus don't t-take him please th-that's all i w-want th-that's all i w-wanna ask f-for p-please…"

"Stand up, now, and let me take the scarf. This is your last warning."

Sans ducks his head, getting back to his feet with some difficulty and stepping closer towards the voice. He feels them begin to unwrap it from his neck. His eyes shut tightly, but not fast enough to keep a tear from escaping.

"Because you were so difficult, you will be sleeping away from the house." Chara says, untying the rope from the door knob and leading him towards the forest.

Sans stumbles after them, drawing in his shoulders and shivering. Why does it have to be so windy today? His bones rattle at the cold as he follows after them, trying to keep up with their pace and avoid tripping at the same time. "...i'm sorry.." He tries.

The child just scoffs, and after a bit of a walk, Chara ties the rope to a tree.

"See you in the morning Sansy." Chara says as they walk away.

"...n-night…" Sans curls up against the trunk, shivering and tucking his knees as close to his chin as he can.

Minutes pass until he begins to hear a distant shuffling. He stiffens up, cracking an eye open and quickly reminding himself that it's a useless gesture. "...Ch..b-boss…?" He lifts his head a bit, "th...th-that...that you…?"

He hears the snow begin to crunch, but not in a footsteps kind of way, but something crawling. Sans scrambles to adjust his position against the tree, blind pupil roving back and forth. Is there wildlife out here? Aside from birds and small squirrels and such, anyway...no snakes, or other cold-blooded animals, and...wolves?

Sans quickly shakes his head. No. Ha, the dog sentries were enough of a handful for a skeleton. And they're...well. Gone.

"...j-just h-hearin' th-things, S-Sans…"

He feels something disrupt the air in front of him.

"ah! whatthefuckholyshit..!" Sans pushes back against the tree, misjudging his position and tripping back over a root, landing in the snow. He clenches his teeth as he picks himself back up, "g-goddammit, Sans, h-how're s-so p-pathetic? " Sans huffs, trying to get comfortable with his arms being tied and his only pillow being snow or a tree, "...P-Paps wouldn't b-be scared...would ya, b-bro? y-you're not...n-not s-scared of a-anything...n-not..not even th-that ps-psychopath…" Sans tucks his knees to his chin, keeping his eyes shut against the wind, "h-heh...you...y-you'd b-be tellin' m-me y-you c-could h-handle this, i-if y-you kn-knew...w-wouldn't...wouldn't w-want me going th-through this a-alone…" He coughs, shivering and sniffing against the cold in his bones, "p-probably wouldn't...wouldn't h-have cried...n-not even o-once...t-too b-brave for th-that...you...heh...y-you always w-were stronger th-than m-me, b-bro…"

Sans blinks as he feels tears escape his sockets - they immediately freeze to his skull, "...i...i s-sure c-could use o-one of y-your h-hugs right n-now, P-Paps…" He feels his chin start to tremble even as he forces out a laugh, "n-nobody h-hugs like th-the g-great P-Papyrus...a-and...and n-n-nobody g-g-gets h-hugged b-by th-the g-great P-Papyrus l-like th-the g-great P-Papyrus's b-brother-.."

His words become incomprehensible as he breaks down sobbing, ducking his chin against his collar and crying out loudly into the wind. So what if something hears him and kills him? Sans isn't allowed something as merciful as death. He'll be brought back again and again until he breaks.

His shoulders shake and his chest heaves as he lets himself sob, not caring about the ache in his throat or ribcage, or if Chara hears or not. He's sad . He's lonely and afraid and he misses his brother he misses Papyrus he misses the only person in the world who truly cares about him…

The cries die out with the wind, in the earliest hours of the morning, and don't come back. Sans lays curled up at the base of the tree, trembling violently but staying absolutely silent. If he keeps his eyes closed and holds his breath long enough, he can smell burnt spaghetti, and for a few seconds, he can be gone from the forest floor and back home, where he belongs.


	7. I'm Just Lonely is All

After a while, he begins to hear footsteps actual footsteps. He opens his eyes, but more to indicate that he's awake than to actually see anything.

"Good morning Sansy. How did you sleep~?"

"h….h-h-hey b...b-b-b-boss…" Is all he manages to get out through his trembling that's intelligible.

"Are you going to be a good boy?"

"y-y-y-yes b-b-b-boss…" It's so cold everything is so cold he can't stop shivering...

He hears the footsteps reach the tree he is tied to, then starts getting dragged back to the house. Sans's legs shake as he struggles to keep them under him. He falls a lot, stammering out nervous apologies every time he does so.

"Hurry up Sans!" Chara complains. "It is taking us longer than it should to get back home."

"i-i kn-know i-i'm s-sorry i d-don't m-mean t-to k-keep f-falling i j...i j-just c-can't f-feel m-my legs o-or...a-anything e-else i-i'm s-sorry…"

"If you were sorry you would move faster."

Sans swallows, focusing all his energy into moving at a steadier pace. He manages to keep up long enough to get back to the house before he collapses again, "s-sorry i-i'm sorry.."

Chara unties him and picks him up by the back of his collar, choking him, and throws him inside the house. Sans hits the floor and stays there, bracing himself up on one elbow and feeling around in front of him to try and get an idea of where he is. He figures out he's close to the couch when he hits his head on the side of

Chara giggles and plops onto the couch, getting under a blanket they had stored there.

"..c..c-can i h-have m-my s-scarf b-back, p-please…?"

"I thought it was your brother's?"

"i-it is…"

"And you lay claim to it so easy. Must be a pretty cool scarf." They laugh. "Maybe this is why you let your brother die."

Sans sniffs and shakes his head, "n-no…i'm..i'm j-just a c-coward…"

"A coward wouldn't wait until after everyone is dead to kill the murderer. Just saying."Chara mocks.

"i-i kn-know.."

Chara lays back, relaxing. They admittedly didn't get much sleep that night. Nightmares are a bitch like that.

"...p-please c-can i h-have it b-back, b-boss…"

"I suppose." They say idly as they toss it in his direction.

Sans grabs it and wraps it around his neck, leaning back against the sofa side and holding it to his face, shaking calming slightly, "th-thank you…" He's still missing his jacket as well, but Papyrus's scarf is far more important to him.

Chara curls into the couch with the intent to sleep, but their want to rest is interrupted by hunger pains. They groan, sitting up. "You hungry?"

"yeah..haven't really had a full meal in several days."

Chara gets up, softly rubbing his head as they walk around him, and walking into the kitchen to start with dinner.

Without really thinking about it, Sans leans a bit into the gentle touch, feeling a bit dazed for a moment by the uncommon lack of pain in physical contact. When it leaves, his senses mostly returns and he feels his gut twist in disgust at himself. In spite of that, however, he gets up and follows at Chara's heels.

"Does soup sound good?" They asked. Usually they just cooked what they wanted but tonight they couldn't settle on one particular thing.

Really good, to be honest. "y-yeah...uh..i th-think there's some cans in the cabinet above the fridge.."

Chara nods, grabbing a few cans and emptying them into a pot. They turn on the stove, and begin warming up the soup.

"It'll be about 12 minutes."

Sans stands awkwardly in the kitchen archway, giving a nod and squinting his eyes up as he tries to listen to what Chara is doing.

After about twelve minutes, Chara checks the temperature of the soup, then turns off the burner.

"Meet me at the table." They are oddly calm as they pour the soup into bowls and grab a couple spoons.

Giving a nod, Sans feels his way towards the table, finding his seat and plopping down. He just hopes that Chara hasn't poisoned his food this time. He really just wants to eat a real meal…

"..i can...i don't..have to eat from the...the floor..?"

"You have been good." Chara says, setting the table. They begin to eat as they idly watch Sans's eye, looking for any trace of a spark. Sans continues sitting there, unable to reach for his serving as he can't tell that it's there. He instead stares ahead blankly, hands fidgeting in his lap.

"Sans, eat. Your food is right in front of you." They say, annoyed, more at themselves for continually forgetting that they had in fact blinded Sans, then at Sans's lack of response.

Sans lifts his head, unsteadily reaching out his hand until his fingers tap against the side of the bowl. "..oh." He keeps his blind gaze down, feeling ashamed and frustrated by his new handicap. "...th-thanks.."

"Yeah." Chara replies tiredly, finishing their bowl. They got up and put their bowl in the sink, before sitting down on the couch.

"Once you finish your food you may go to your room."

"...al..al-already?" There's disappointment in his tone, in spite of his efforts to hide it.

"Would you rather clean? I mean, you can get it done now instead of later, but I won't stop you from wasting what precious time you have to rest."

"i j-just wanted to-.." Sans stops himself. What, wanted to spend more time with Chara? His torturer? The silence in his room is hard to deal with, and the more unoccupied his thoughts are, the more depressing they become. Even if Chara does constantly torment him, at least they keep him on his toes too much for him to start wishing too hard for Papyrus.

Looking back down at his bowl, Sans picks it up and sips the broth, shutting his eyes. He really was pathetic...

"Wanted to what? Finish your sentence" Chara orders, curiosity a constant nag in their brain.

Well. He's learned several times that trying to disobey a command only leads to pain. "...h-hang out a b-bit..?"

Chara was silent for a bit, gazing at Sans dubiously, before nodding, then remembering Sans was blind. "We will be watching more of those CD's, but if you insist, go ahead."

The skeleton rests his head on his hand, elbow on the table as he rubs his temple, "you wouldn't w-wanna just...talk, or...go to Grillby's...tell jokes…" His eyes shut as he falls back into his normal pattern, "like….like friends, with….y'know, good food...some bad laughs…" His voice shakes a bit.

Chara glares. They stand up, and grab Sans by the collar. "You idiot, what makes you think we are friends!? What makes you think I am as moldable as my host!? Huh!?"

Sans doesn't even tremble. He keeps his head down, a broken grin on his face. "yeah...that's ridiculous, right?" He heaves out a breathless laugh, squeezing his eyes shut, "a person like you...won't ever be happy...with me...no matter what i do, right?

Chara paused at the unexpected reaction. Why wasn't he afraid? He seemed more... heartbroken? Chara throws him to the ground. "I suggest you stop trying to manipulate me Sansy, you are treading dangerous waters, and I am half tempted to tear that scarf from your throat!"

He swallows, shifting himself up to his knees and keeping his head bowed. Yeah. That's what he got for asking for a little companionship. Figures. "...sorry."

"What are you doing?" Chara's confusion only growing. It irks them so as Sans is showing very little signs of fear.

Sans gives a weak chuckle, putting his face in his hands, "i'm... lonely , kid…"

Chara is stunned for a moment, then they smile and sit on the couch, patting the cushion next to them. "Well, why didn't you say so? Come on up here."

Reasonably wary, Sans gets to his feet and shuffles forward until he can feel the sofa pillows under his fingertips. He slowly sits down, body completely relaxed in spite of his underlying fear. Chara is probably just going to hurt him. But he's just so goddamn pathetic, he'll jump at any chance to get some form of comfort. It serves him right, if his trust is used against him.

Chara grabs his collar, and gently pulls his head onto their lap, stroking his skull. "Pets need affection every so often, that's what Toriel would always say~. Are you not grateful that I know how to properly care for my pets?"

He should feel humiliated. He should feel angry. Indignant. Upset that his worth as a person is being chipped away.

Instead Sans gives a shaky sigh, closing his eyes and shamefully enjoying the kind, soothing touch, "s-sure a-am, b-boss.." He whispers.

Chara smiles gently. "I'm glad" They say softly, a feeling of surprise erupting from half their brain. Why so surprised, I'm just caring for my pet is all .

The one part of Sans's mind that wasn't yet so swamped with loneliness and depression tried to reason with him. The moment he let his guard down, Chara would just lash out. The kid was just waiting for him to get comfortable so that when their next strike came, it'd be worse. There was nothing smart about what he was doing.

'...heh. when have i ever done anything smart…?' Sans shyly curls in closer against Chara, his breathing slowly evening out…

Chara found themselves look fondly as the skeleton fell asleep on their lap. They found themselves being lulled as Sans's sleeping breaths caused their breathing to deepen. They soon found themselves leaning over, and resting their head on his hip, and falling asleep soon after.

Sans starts shaking in the middle of the night, fingers digging into Papyrus's scarf as his eyes shut tightly. He curls up tightly his breathing quickening. "hff..hff..n-no...no no...please…"

Chara is awoken by Sans's pleas. They sit up quickly, and looking around, instinctively looking for danger. Seeing none, they realise he is having a bad dream. "Sans, wake up!"

"Ch-Chara n-no p-please i d-didn't mean t-to….i...no, ple- nngh!" Sans tenses up, sweating profusely and crying, "i-i'm s-sorry i-i'm s-sorry…! "

"Shhhh, shhhh. You are alright, you are safe, I am not angry" Chara says gently, stroking his skull to calm him down.

"Repeat what I just said, You are alright, you are safe, I am not angry"

Sans is still tense, still breathing hard, "i-i'm a-alright...i-i'm safe..y-you...you're not...angry.." He whispers.

"Thats a good boy. You just had a bad dream. Repeat it one more time for me?" They said it less like a command, and more of a gentle prompting. They continued to stroke his skull gently.

Sans's trembling slowly dissipates, "i'm alright….i'm safe...you're not angry.."

"There you go Sansy, don't you feel much better?"

"i'm safe.." Sans murmurs again, head lolling back so it fully rests on Chara's lap.

"There you go, you have my permission to go back to sleep if you wish"

Sans is already softly snoring. He'd never been awake in the first place. He gives a sigh, shifting and hiding his face against Chara's stomach.

Chara strokes his skull for a few moments more, then lies on his hip once more, and goes back to sleep. Sans doesn't have dreams about Papyrus. Just vague, dark but comforting visions of someone stroking his head and whispering to him.


	8. Grillby's Seems Like a Good Idea

He wakes up long before he wants to, but when is that ever not the case? He opens his eyes, and panics for just a moment when he can't see anything, but then remembers he's blind.

"hah...of course i'd forget somethin' like that.." Sans mumbles miserably, shutting his eyes again and pushing his head into the couch cushion. Fuck mornings.

"Hmm, what did you forget?" Chara asked sleepily, awoken by Sans's voice.

"that i'm blind now." Sans answers in a murmur.

"Yeah, I forget too." They reply, sitting up and rubbing the sleep from their eyes.

Sans gives a chuckle, "well. at least it isn't just me."

Chara lifts Sans's head off their lap. "Get up, my legs are asleep"

"sorry boss." Sans sits up, giving a yawn and falling back against the back of the sofa, drooping his arms over it.

Chara stands up and stretches. "So, you mentioned chilling at Grillby's, I don't know why you want to but if you are still up for it I don't care."

Sans looks up, blind eye brightening, "r-really?"

"I mean, I guess. We haven't gone on a walk in a while so, yeah. Meet me by the door while I get your leash." Then they walked away to go get the leash.

Right. That thing...ugh.

Shaking off the urge to ask if maybe they could just not use that for once, Sans gets up, unsteadily making his way to the door.

Chara clipped it into place when they returned, and they begin to head in the direction of Grillby's. Chara brings them both inside once they arrived. "Soo, what now?" They ask.

Sans wanders forward to his usual seat at the bar. He feels the familiar counter beneath his fingers, recognizing every crack, dent, and scrape. It feels like nothing has changed, except, "...sure is a lot different without any noise, huh…?"

"Less of a headache that's for sure." They say with a chuckle.

Sans gives a sigh, "It was nice, though. Everyone here treated me like I was an old friend…" He rubs at his forehead, "'Weren't you just in here for breakfast, Sans…?' 'You must be thinkin' of brunch'...h-heh…" He puts a hand to his eye, shoulders shaking, "h-heh heh…." Sans folds his arms over the bar. Being blind helps him imagine certain things better - like the warmth that could always be felt when Grillby was standing in front of him, waiting to take an order, or just listening.

He can hear the sound of glasses being shifted around as Grillby wipes them down and puts them away.

He can smell freshly baked fries, and can feel the steam wafting off of them hitting his face.

There's the shuffling of cards as Lesser Dog keeps losing to itself. Dogressa and Dogamy giving each other the occasional wet kiss and nuzzling their noses too, probably. Any moment now Papyrus is going to burst through the door, and carry Sans back off to work.

..any moment now.

Sans lowers his head, squeezing his eyes shut tightly. Any moment. Any moment at all please Papyrus please come and get me…

He puts his face in his hands and his body wracks with a silent sob. Maybe coming here hadn't been such a good idea after all...

"You wanted to come here. Quit being such a crybaby." Chara says annoyed. They scratch idly at the counter, and notice hearts etched into it. "Wow, monsters were sure crazy about getting those souls."

"...what. what did you do with the SOULS?" Sans asks, suddenly realizing that he hasn't even thought about the six human SOULS.

"Hmm, I knocked you out, when to kill Asgore, you started to wake up so I knocked you out again, then went back and destroyed them." They shrug. Then they survey the room. "Hell of a lot emptier with everyone dead." They snicker.

"it shouldn't be like this...it should be full of people...should...sh-should be full of my..m-my friends...l-laughter and...and g-good food…" Sans swallows, curling in his fingers, "..but...i-it's empty...and…" He stares down blindly at the counter, "...it's all my fault…"

"Eh, I prefer quiet to loudness anyday." Chara says as they sit back, leaning against the counter.

Sans continues like he isn't even listening, "...Paps hated this place, s-so...it always meant a l-lot when he'd go h-here with m-me.."

Chara nods, letting Sans get sentimental - let him relive days that are long gone. They're never coming back, so they may as well let him mourn them.

"l-lotsa people s-still liked it, th-though. Grillby's got really popular on the surface..but until it was built, s-some monsters kept coming b-back.." Sans gives a bit of a laugh, leaning back and staring at his lap, "it was sort of a tradition, f-for F-Frisk and i to go here on Saturdays-"

Chara stiffens. "Excuse me?"

"they'd always get fries...every time...kid m-musta really liked 'em.."

"Sans, what have I said before concerning Frisk?" They say, their tone low, and angry.

The skeleton slowly comes back to reality, shaking his head and thinking about the question, "not to say-" His eyes widen. "...shit...sorry, i didn't mean t-"

They grab the leash and pull it hard, knocking him to the ground. "This is the third time Sansy boy, if you were truly sorry, you wouldn't have done it! Stand up!" They say, yanking the chain once more.

Sans panics as he hits the floor, grabbing his collar at the tight pull on his neck, slowly standing up, "wh-what're...wh-what're y-you gonna d-do t-to m-me…?"

They pull him down again, laughing. "I thought I told you to get up?" They say with sadistic amusement.

Sans shakily gets to his feet again, "s-sorry…"

They pull him down a third time, this time holding the leash tightly to the floor. "Come on Sansy, get up!"

Straining against Chara's hold, Sans braces his hands under him and struggles to get to his knees, choking and gasping for air. He wants to give up but he's more scared of what the consequences will be for quitting than for failing. Chara watches him struggle in amusement, and after a few minutes, they jerk the leash to the side, causing him to lose his balance.

"gah!" Sans squints his eyes shut, chest shuddering with the desire to cry as the frustration builds up, "i can't get up if you keep throwing me around, kid!"

"Come on Sansy, get up! You don't want to be punished for disobeying me do you?"

Sans's response is an angry growl, and suddenly jerking his head back, pulling the leash out of Chara's grip and getting to his feet. "heh." He can't hold back a smug grin.

Chara, in a flash of anger, leapt forward, grabbing the leash again, and went behind Sans, and yanking on it, causing him to fall onto his back. They then step around and put a foot on his chest. "I ought to reset after that little stunt you just pulled." Chara took out their knife and pressed the flat of the blade to his cheek.

"did yah want me to get up or not?" Sans says through clenched teeth.

"I want you to curb your attitude, before that scarf becomes my property!"

Sans gives an angry huff, but he eventually just turns his eyes away and says nothing.

Chara takes out rope and ties Sans' hands behind his back. "Stay on your knees."

They start circling him. Sans cranes his neck as he looks around, trying uselessly to keep his face turned towards them.

"Let's see, how am I going to punish you? There is always resetting..."

"don't . don't don't don't you dare p..please, anything else please-"

"Once I reset I will make sure only you and Papyrus are left. I will knock you out, tie you up, and lure Papyrus to you, then I will knock him out as you watch in horror, and that is only the beginning of what I will do~"

"y-you're not touching him-!"

"Not at first. I will torture you in front of him until he is begging for me to torture him instead. And you will watch as I break him."

"no!" Sans struggles to get to his feet again.

"Stay on your knees!" Chara snaps.

"don't RESET! don't hurt P-Papyrus you said you wouldn't-!"

"If you behaved~"

"i-i'm b-behaving.." Sans gets back to his knees, shaking, "i-i'm b-behaving, s-see? i'm sorry i s-stood i'm sorry i y-yelled i'm sorry i said their name i'm sorry i d-didn't play along i-i'm s-sorry i-i'll b-behave okay?" He forces a frantic smile.

"I could break your fingers instead~" They say, stroking his hand.

"y..y-yeah, sure...a..a-anything e-else...just n-not Papyrus.."

"I wonder how many I can pull off before you hp runs our..." They stroke his pinkie finger, they they grip it tightly.

Sans tenses, ducking his head and holding his breath.

Their grip just slides off. "Nahhh, maybe something else." They start circling him again.

Sans chokes out his held breath, shoulders shaking.

They cover his mouth with their hands. "Perhaps suffocation~"

He swallows, testingly trying to take in a breath but failing. His chest tightens in panic as he recalls having his head shoved under water for extensive periods of time, back when he'd tried to protest the collar.

"Nooo, it's been done to death..."

The hands pull away and he gasps in air, chest rising and falling rapidly, "h-how about a...a t-time out or...or s-somethin' like that…?"

They run the knife along his skull. "Hmmm, so many things~"

Sans quickly ducks his head out from under the blade, only to be suddenly slapped.

" Hold still !" They snap, sounding suddenly furious.

Sans shrinks down, "s-sorry…"

"Hmm. I dunno Sansy, torturing your brother sounds like so much fun right now."

Sans looks up (pointlessly), blind eyes wide in fear, "no-!"

"He'd be so much more fun, though! I bet he wouldn't be crying like a baby right now - Papyrus is an idiot but at least he's strong. Unlike you. Unlike the pathetic older brother that never tried once to protect him~"

Sans turns his head away, swallowing, "just..j-just torture me i deserve it, n-not him…"

"He has so much more HP too, imagine, I won't be as limited as I am with you." The child sneers.

" Chara please !"

"Convince me then. Convince me once and for all that you are worth my time more than Papyrus."

"i...i won't fight. i'll do whatever...whatever you want , Chara, i swear it just d-don't hurt my brother…"

"You will do whatever I want no matter what." Chara states.

Sans nods, shutting his eyes, "y-yeah. i p-promise…"

"And what have I told you about mentioning Frisk?"

"...wh-who..?" Sans gives a strained, weak laugh, "n..n-never h-heard of 'em…"

"Excellent. Now stand up, we are going home!" They say as they untie his hands.

Sans gets to his feet, feeling more angry than anything else. He shoves his hands in his pockets and follows Chara out, back to home.

As soon as they get inside, Chara unclips the leash. "I want an apology."

"sorry." Sans says flatly.

Chara grabs him roughly by the collar. "I want you to be sincere, beg for my forgiveness. Remember I can reset at anytime and make you watch as I torture your brother, making sure you hear him screaming your name to help him!"

At the mental image of Papyrus screaming for help, Sans's faux courage fades. He bows his head, taking in a shaky breath. "...i-i'm sorry.." He says again, genuinely this time.

"How sorry are you?"

Sans gives a weary sigh, dropping to his knees and shutting his eyes, "please forgive me, Chara...please…"

"Fine, I'll accept your apology. But right now, assure me that you have learned your lesson, or that scarf will be confetti."

"it won't happen again. promise." Sans crosses his SOUL, giving a very weak smile before dropping his hands back to his lap.

"Good." They say, smiling. They run their fingers gently along his skull, before heading to the kitchen. "I could go for some food, how about you Sansy?"

"yeah, sure…" What were the chances of being poisoned again? Pretty high, he figures.

They decide to make something quick and simple this time: sandwiches. "Hold out your hand."

Very hesitantly he offers his palm, curling away a bit as he braces himself for pain.

They place his sandwich in his hand, then they sit on the couch. "We don't need the table for sandwiches." They say, patting the spot next to them on the couch. "Have a seat."

"c'mon, kid…" Sans gets up, feeling his way along the back of the sofa, "..couldn't even take the opportunity to say Sans wiches?"

"You comedian." They say with a chuckle. "It has been a while since I have heard a pun from you. I have never been any good at them myself."

Sans gives a bit of a grin as he sits down, "well that one was just obvious…"

" Lettuce be honest here, I'm not the punny type."

"i've heard bread-er." Sans winks blindly.

"Tibia bit honest, I am all out of puns."

Sans gives a bit of a wheeze, "i'm kinda outta practice myself."

"Yeah." Chara finishes the last bite of their sandwich. "When you're finished, you may stay down here, or head to bed."

"think i'll head upstairs….been a long day for me…"


	9. Howdy!

Later, Sans is lying curled up in his bed, sleeping relatively peacefully. He's a little scraped up from the punishments, but Chara hadn't poisoned him or severely crippled him. So, overall a good day in his book.

The window is slowly pushed open from the outside, so quietly that Sans remains undisturbed. Several long vines snake through the opening over towards Sans's bed. One lightly strokes the side of his face, causing him to sigh in his sleep and turn his head to the side. The moment he does so, his mouth is wrenched open by a leafy tendril and he chokes and sits up when one of the thicker limbs is forced down his throat, muffling him. He's abruptly wrapped up tightly by the malevolent branches and is dragged over towards the open window. Sans tries to grab at the sill, but his wrists are wrapped up and pulled away before he can wrap his fingers around it, and he's carried outside, hovering...who knew how many feet above ground.

"Howdy, trash bag !"

Sans freezes, tensing up at that voice. Flowey…? How is Flowey alive? Chara killed him, didn't they!

"Boy, you've changed a lot since we last hung out, pal! Ooh, what's this?" Flowey pulls off Papyrus's scarf and tugs at Sans's collar, laughing and feigning surprise. "Oh wow! You've become a good little puppy, haven'tcha?" He drops the scarf to the snow, and Sans squirms desperately against Flowey's grip, blindly roving his eyes around. "I bet Chara's been having some fun with you! Boy, too bad I wasn't there to see it! Oh!" Flowey holds a leaf up to his mouth, "But I was! I've seen almost everything, trash bag. There's only a few bits of your torment that I missed - but you'll be able to tell me all about it, won'tcha? We haven't had a chance to catch up in a while! What'daya say, trash puppy? Wanna 'run away' again? I'm sure Chara won't bother trying to find you this time! They'll probably just RESET and get right to torturing Papyrus!"

'no no no no no!' Sans claws desperately at the vine around his mouth as he senses Flowey starting to drag him away. In a desperate move he bites down surprisingly hard on the vine, freeing himself for just a second as Flowey gives a pained, angry shriek.

" Chara!"

A second later he's silenced again, and in a minute, he's gone.

Chara jolts from their spot on the couch as they hear Sans scream their name. "What the hell?" They murmur to themselves. They run up to Sans's room, seeing the window open and Papyrus's scarf lying on the snow outside. "Sans?"

Snowdin fades away gradually as Sans is pulled away by the now-massive weed. The cold starts to go away, and he can hear...well. Nothing. If Flowey were taking him through Waterfall he would be hearing water, but there's nothing but the ominous shuffling of Flowey's vines as he moves along, humming excitedly. His useless eyes tear up and he lowers his head, shaking. He'd worked so hard to keep Chara happy and entertained, and now everything is going to get ripped away because they're going to think he'd tried to run...

Chara has never been more confused. If Sans ran away, he would have taken the scarf with him. But...how else could he be gone? They inspect the ground, and see massive, tubular indents in the snow. Far too big to be made by Sans or any other wildlife. But how can that be? The only people left alive in the Underground are themselves and Sans...

... and Flowey.

Chara's eyes widen as they realize that the flower hadn't made his usual appearance in the garden after they defeated Asgore. The little weed was still alive . "Well shit. I can't believe I forgot to kill him..." They were so preoccupied with Sans and finishing off the other monsters that they simply assumed that they had already killed him.

"Oh brother dear, you should know I hate sharing..."

Chara wrapped Papyrus's scarf around their neck. They are going to need better defense from the cold and from Flowey, if it comes down to a fight. They make sure they are properly equipped with health items before leaving the house.

They follow the circular vine tracks in the snow, knife in hand, "Ready or not brother, here I come~"

Sans is thrown forward, his hoodie caught tightly in the vine that was holding him and causing him to leave it behind in Flowey's grip. He rolls for a few feet on the hard stone floor, panting and shifting onto his knees. It feels cold in just his t-shirt..

"sh-shit…" Sans wipes at his eyes, clearing away all traces of tears and shakily getting to his feet. He can hear shifting vines all around him, but aside from that, there's no other sound.

"That's right, Sans! Just get comfortable! How do you like my home? I've moved in here to avoid Chara. I hoped that they'd eventually calm down from their grudge against me...obviously, that isn't going to happen." Flowey grumbles. "But on the bright side, I managed to grab two of the human SOULs while Chara was distracted with making sure you didn't wake up! It's a pretty neat upgrade, don't you think?"

Getting the idea that Flowey can't tell that he's blind (the light in his pupil has stayed, although much dimmer), Sans tries to act like he's sizing the flower up, "..y-yeah, uh...probably a lot better than bein' soulless, i'm guessin'..."

"Enough about me, though...you've clearly been going through far more interesting trials, trash puppy." A vine wraps around the inside of Sans's collar a gives a sharp tug forward, pulling him to his knees. "How much of a pathetic pet has Chara turned you into? I've fought you lots of times, tried to play with you, but I've never been able to manage this!"

Sans swallows and says nothing, continuing to stare ahead and hoping he's looking somewhere in the vague direction of Flowey's face.

"Oh, you aren't feeling so chatty, are you? Well !" Flowey wraps his vines around Sans's ribs, lifting him up into the air and bringing him close to his face, "I think I can fix that!" He starts constricting his hold, and Sans digs his fingers into the plant's vine, trying to pull free. He starts gasping for breath as his ribs come close to breaking. "You can only take so much before you crumble into dust, right? I'm sure Chara would hate to see you dead - they'd get bored just playing with a useless pile of trash." Flowey gives an ugly laugh, giving another tight squeeze and successfully cracking one of Sans's ribs, "Well! Maybe not, since they've been keeping you around for so long!"

The holes Flowey left led them to the Ruins' entrance. However, the door was still an obstacle, as it had closed behind them after they killed Toriel. First, they looked around for something that might just smash through the door, but Chara isn't reluctant to admit that they aren't exactly strong enough to uproot a tree for a battering ram.

"Maybe magic?" Suggests the quiet, rather obnoxious voice in their head.

"When have I ever used magic, you stupid pacifist?" Chara snarls aloud, glaring off to the side.

"Have you ever tried?"

"Why should I? I'm strong enough without it!"

"Not strong enough to break down the door, though."

"Shut up!"

"...I could teach you a little bit. I learned some while on the surface-"

"Hah! Accept help from you ?!" Chara laughs loudly, although forcefully, biting their teeth into a tight smile, "Why should I?"

"We both want to rescue Sans - we both want to get through this door. But you aren't strong enough on your own, and you won't allow me to control my body-"

" My body!" Chara corrects with a snarl, "And if this is some sort of trick to let you take over and ruin everything again, then it isn't going to work!"

"I don't need control I just need you to listen for once!"

For a moment Chara just glares ahead silently at the giant obstacle in their way. Then their grip on the knife tightens and they give a sigh. "Fine. Teach me."

Sans is wheezing, staying slack in Flowey's grip even as it begins to tighten again. Three ribs have cracked, and now Flowey has a vine wrapped around his shin bone. "Last chance to start being polite and chat with me, puppy. I'll break you into bitty bones if you don't start being more polite."

The skeleton shakes, shutting his eyes tightly. "..wh-what could w-we possibly...have to talk about..."

"Well I want to know what's been going on with Chara, of course!" Flowey chirps, tilting his head, "What else would I care about?"

The skeleton squints blindly downwards, "y-you've….been w-watchin' everything, what...wh-what don't you know that i c-could tell ya... anythin' about..?"

Smiling, Flowey curls the vines around Sans in slightly tighter, delighting in the weak whimper this earns him, "I want to know about Frisk , Sans."

Immediately Sans grows tense, "Frisk is dead."

"Liaaarrrr! Golly, Sans, you must really be an idiot if you think I'd believe that!"

"Frisk is dead. that's...that's all y-you're gonna g-get me t-to say a-about them." He turns his head away, curling up his fists. If Flowey had asked about anything else that had been happening, Sans wouldn't have doubted that Chara would love for him to tell Flowey all about the horrible tortures they've been putting him through. But about Frisk...no. Sans isn't even supposed to be saying their name, let alone tell Flowey how the kid is still fighting for control.

Flowey glares at him, and without warning, snaps his leg like a twig. At least the skeleton's screams can be relished. "Suit yourself, trash bag. After all those RESETS you caused me, it's only fair that I get a little revenge, don't you think?"

Sans is flung back to the ground, hitting it hard with his shoulder. His measly H.P. drops down to 0.45 as he rolls over the stone floor, panting and shutting his eyes tightly. "A-Asriel, i c-"

"Don't call me that!" The soulless child screams, lashing a vine across his face and sending him skidding back until he hits a wall, "Don't you ever! Dare! Use that name!"

Sans cowers back, trying to look as small as possible as though he can hide himself.

The flower continues silently seething as he glares at him. "...why won't you look at me , Sans? You're being so rude.."

Quickly Sans tries to turn his head in the direction of the voice. But it has such an odd echo that he can't quite place the exact location. "i-i, uh.."

"...wait." Flowey draws in closer, cornering the skeleton and grabbing his wrists, pinning them above his head to hold him still, "...what happened to your eyes, puppy?" He sneers, laughing at the panicked expression on Sans's face. "What, did you think you could keep that from me for forever? That I wouldn't notice?! Golly, you really are an idiot!"

Sans feels leaves scraping the rim of his empty socket and jerks his head away, only succeeding in getting himself pinned back even further until he can barely move. He tries to hold back a pained scream as one of the vines snakes inside, scraping around the inside of his skull. "hhff..hff…"

" I don't think trying to burst down the door is the best idea. You should at least practice your magic on something else before you try that, if you're going to anyway."

"I don't have time for your stupid 'safety' concerns. I need to get into the Ruins and this door is in my way !"

"You don't have enough control over your power to try-"

" Shut up and stay quiet for once! I need to concentrate..."

The pain worsens as the vines inside of Sans grow thorns, scratching along the interior of his skull as Flowey coils the vines through him, pulling and twisting at his bones.

"s-stop! s-stop stop ghhh!" Sans tenses, drawing his shoulders in and his knees up as he tries to cope with the pain. It didn't take him long to fall to his seat once Flowey started to really torture him - the weed had found it amusing when Sans had tried to claw off the vines attacking him, but it quickly got annoying. And so they instead easily pinned his wrists above his head. It's much less of a fuss to hurt him this way.

"Oh, Sans, you're shaking! Are you cold? Here, you probably want this." There's the sound of fabric being ripped to pieces before Sans's hoodie is thrown back at him, one shred at a time. "Oops! Well, good thing your brother is such a great seamster , right? Oh, wait! He's dead !"

Sans clenches his teeth, curling in his toes and trying to pull away, his efforts having weakened tremendously, "p-please, p-please s-stop i-it h-hurts..!"

"I know it hurts, idiot , that's what makes all this so fun!" Flowey's laughter mixes with Sans's pained screaming as he starts threateningly crushing his vertebrae, "Considering how spineless you really are, Sans, it makes sense that I should remove it for real! What do you think? Wouldn't that be funny?"

"no! no no no no !" Sans wheezes, his heels scraping uselessly against the rock floor as he tries to push further away from the malevolent plant, forgetting in his panic that he's already being held against a wall.

"I wonder if you'll survive…" Is all Flowey says in response as he slowly wraps his tendrils around the base of Sans's head.

This is taking too long. It has taken them several attempts just to create the tiniest spark in their palm, but Chara wants more than a spark - they need a giant fire blast to break down a door that thick.

"Does it have to be fire, Chara?" Frisk questions for the millionth time, " Listen - the door opens from the inside. Maybe you can use telekinesis to open it instead of trying to destroy it."

Giving a frustrated huff, Chara stamps their foot and shuts their hand over the small flame in their palm, "Fine . We'll do it your way."

"Finally…"

"I like you better when you try to take your body back and exhaust yourself to silence." Chara grumbles as they focus their SOUL and magic on the door. "Alriiight, open!"

But nothing happens.

Chara can feel Frisk's silent amusement.

"Don't you dare mock me!"

"I didn't say anything."

"Why don't you continue doing that while I work, and stop distracting me ." Chara seethes, looking over at some small pebbles lying on the ground. It looks as though they are going to have to take some time to practice.

The vines finally pull away from him, eliciting a final cry as they are yanked out of his socket - Flowey didn't go through on his idea to take out Sans's spine, but he had fun tormenting Sans with the threat of it for a while. But no, they know he's too weak to survive that, no matter how non-lethal their intentions are.

Flowey stays quiet for a minute, just observing the wounded, blind Sans as he collapses to the ground, holding his hands to his sockets. There's some sort of substance pouring from them, in profuse amounts, but he can't see what it is. He's panting, flinching every time he hears a single sound.

Flowey giggles as he watches the frightened skeleton. "Golly, Sans! Who knew you were so pathetic? I mean, obviously you're pathetic..but to be reduced to a cowardly, whimpering little whelp like this…" Flowey laughs again. "Gee, my sibling sure is great at torture, huh?"

Sans says nothing, still trying to calm his breathing as more and more of the thick liquid pours out onto his palm.

"Still giving me the silent treatment? Well...I know what'll fix that!" Flowey says cheerfully, grabbing him around the waist again and lifting him off the floor.

"i'll talk!" Sans screams, gasping at the pain of pressure on his already shattered ribs. He can't handle the thought of any more torture. Not now. Not when he already knows he's going to lose everything. "i-i'll t-talk, j-just...p-please s-stop, just s-stop th-this, please…." Sans heaves in a gasp of air, going limp in Flowey's grasp and keeping his shoulders tucked in, "...p-please…"

"Gee, I dunno, Sans, you've kind of waited too long! I've realized how fun it is to hurt you. It's been an awful long time!" Flowey giggles at the panicked look in Sans's face as he brushes the vines around his eyes again, and then drops him on the ground. "Maybe, though! How about you beg me to stop hurting you, first? Because you've got a lot of practice with that now, don'tcha? Begging?" Flowey grabs Sans's collar and yanks him down to his knees, delighting in his cries of pain. "So go on! Show me what you've got! Don't be shy!"

Sans's chin is trembling as he shuts his eyes and lowers his head, holding his breath to keep back his sobs. Slowly he puts his head to the ground, shaking and feeling the humiliation begin to swallow him whole. "p-please, F-Flowey, p-please d-don't h-hurt m-me a-anymore...i-i'm t-too….t-too w-weak a-and...a-and p-pathetic to h-handle i-it j-just...p-please...p-please please please i-i'm sorry i t-tried to stay silent, i-i...i-i w-won't, a-anymore…" Sans feels tears hit the ground as he wishes he could just die - he feels so small and helpless with Flowey looming over him and literally forcing him to his knees. How is he so weak ? Why can't he just handle the pain instead of immediately crumbling at the threat of it? "...p-please…" He whispers.

Finally .

The damnable door finally swings open, but, to Chara's chagrin, not on their own power. They had had to allow Frisk to help them focus their DETERMINATION.

"I could have done it without you." Chara says, trying not to sound like they are pouting.

" In about ten more years."

"Shut up!"

They enter the ruins, and continue to follow Flowey's tracks. Unfortunately, dirt is not nearly as imprintable as snow, and they can only trace the trail until they leave Toriel's house, for at the crossroads, there are tons of snaky indents in the dust. And not pointing specifically in any direction.

"So, this is where the weed has been hiding..." Chara muses, resecuring their grip around their knife and glancing back and forth, "Ready or not.." They begin to repeat their earlier mantra, choosing a direction and feeling their pupils turn red as they stalk down the hall, " …"


	10. Can This Technically be Called a Rescue?

The delighted cackle that follows Sans's plead makes him sick to his SOUL. He panics again as the flower picks him up, "Oh stop squirming, puppy, I'm not gonna hurtcha. Not now , anyway." Flowey winks at him in spite of his blindness, holding him gently around his chest and letting him dangle in mid-air, forcing him to cling to the vine for security, "Golly, that was impressive, Sans! I feel like you would've been ready to lick the floor for me! Too bad you don't have a tongue. Anyway...how about you tell me what my sibling has been up to? It's been so long since I've seen them.."

Sans gives a hesitant shrug, scratching the back of his skull, "...j-just...uh, h-hangin' around, p-pretty much...w-watching...w-watchin' recordings of all their...killings...and uh...torturing me...th-that's a given though, h-heh…"

"That sounds about right...now, tell me about Frisk."

He shudders, "...wh….why do you want to know, a-anyway, h-huh?"

"What makes you think you have permission to ask me that, hm?"

The skeleton grinds his teeth nervously - Chara is going to give him hell for this. "...Frisk is still fighting."

Chara finds themselves crawling around on their hands and knees as they track Flowey's path into the Ruins. 'How did he even get here?' They squint hard at the ground to try and discern which lines are fresher than others. After crawling for quite a bit of time, Chara's first thought when they scuff up the skin of their knee on some crumbling concrete is that they should make Sans crawl about more. Hopefully it will be as torturous for him as it is for them. It's his fault they're having to do this, anyway - the stupid comedian should have locked his window. He should have fought harder. He should have screamed for help sooner. He should have...he should've just not gotten kidnapped by a stupid flower!

In the end all that Chara is sure about is that it's somehow Sans's fault he got taken, and that that weed is really going to get it.

They stand up to dust themselves off briefly and look up and forward to see a seemingly endless stretch of ruined houses before them. At the thought of having to search through every last inch of this place Chara immediately grows impatient and pulls out their knife, clutching it tightly. "Forget the element of surprise, then." They huff.

The child takes off running through the streets, calling out at the top of their lungs, "SANS!" They don't seem to be remotely short of breath as they continue yelling out his name, "SANS!"

"th-that's all i-i've h-heard Ch-Chara say a-about 'em, i s-swear...j-just th-that they 'd-don't exist', b-but...i kn-know th-they're f-fighting...n-nearly once at day, at this point…"

"Golly! I thought for sure that little pacifist was dead! I wonder how Chara took over so fast and so completely? Hm! Well, they are pretty DETERMINED! Far more than Frisk ever was, for sure!"

Sans disagrees but decides not to voice this opinion. He doesn't have any evidence to back it up at the moment - Frisk is fighting, perhaps, but they still lost to Chara in the first place. "..y...yeah." He murmurs instead, tensely toying with his fingers and feeling himself chipping away at the bone. His anxiety doesn't have a better outlet at the moment. "...s-so, you, uh...you got what you wanted, outta...outta me, so maybe...m-maybe let me go, now, huh?"

Flowey cackles, curling his vines tighter around Sans in a hug-like gesture, "You're funny , Sans. Hilarious, really! Why should I let you go? After all the RESETS you put me through? After failing again and again to protect the Underground? You were the only one powerful enough to stop Chara from killing all of us, but you just hid!"

Sans tenses, drawing in his shoulders, "y-you're gonna ride m-me about th-that too, h-huh?"

"Oh, do you think you deserve to be forgiven for it? Hm?"

"..." Sans lowers his head, "...no."

"Mhmm, didn't think so. Now! How about I-"

"SANS!"

Distant but audible. Sans lifts his head, blindly squinting around as if he can find the source, eyes widening. Abruptly the air is squeezed out of him and he's shaken violently for a second, choking as a vine tightens itself around his throat.

"Don't even think about it, trash bag." The flower hisses, "Don't you dare say a single word ."

He fights against the hold around him, gasping weakly for air and shutting his eyes.

"Oh don't be an idiot , Sans. Why would you want Chara to find you anyways? All they're going to do is punish you for getting taken - what's so better about being with them , huh? Do you enjoy eating out of dog bowls?" Flowey grins, sneering at him, "Are you some kinda freak ?"

Sans glares weakly at the ground, giving a shaky sigh and shaking his head.

Flowey snickers, loosening the pressure around his throat to let him breathe a little, "Even if you do scream, how do you know they're going to find you? And if they do, maybe they don't want you back. Maybe they'll just torture you with me!"

"i g...g-get….it…" Sans wheezes, swallowing and coughing, "..th..th-they're….only...g-gonna...h-hurt me...worse….i g..g-get…..it.."

"Good." Flowey smirks, dropping the vine from around his neck, "Now, how about-"

"CHARA!"

The skeleton is instantly grabbed around the neck again and hurled at the ground, thorny vines immediately wrapping around his limbs and crushing his bones. "I warned you!" Flowey shrieks over his screaming, "YOU IDIOT!"

Chara grins as they hear Sans's voice - the screaming that follows (which they predicted would happen) is much easier to trace than faded lines in the dirt. Eventually they find themselves dropping down a large hole in the floor of one of the houses, landing in a large cavern underneath. Chara pauses to gawk at the plant's large size, but they quickly regain themselves.

"Azzy, didn't Toriel ever teach you it wasn't nice to steal other kid's toys?" Chara asks calmly, running their fingers over the back of their blade.

"Chara!" Flowey greets, smiling and rising up to a bit more of his potential height to show what power he's gained, "You never were good at sharing, were you?"

"Nope, and I never will be." Chara scans the area and eventually sees Sans - he's being held up high in the air by the back of his collar, far out of reach of Chara. Both legs appear to be broken, and his skull is cracked slightly. A thick liquid is draining from his left eye, which he won't even open.

He's not moving.

Chara grits their teeth and breathes out slowly, keeping composure, "Now, what say you return my toy that you broke so that I may fix him, and take him back home with me?" Chara suggests, faux innocent smile on their face and hand clutching their knife a little tighter. Their smile briefly fades into a scowl as Flowey snickers at the pitiful size of their weapon. "Also, I must say, my little bro is not looking so little anymore. Did you manage to find any extra souls lying about?"

"I sure did, Chara! Only two, but it sure makes a difference, huh? Too bad your puppy here distracted you from noticing they were gone!" They tighten their grip on Sans, grinning at the weak cry of pain he makes in response. "I guess I don't blame you now, though. Why didn't you tell me you were having so much fun? I feel a little left out!"

Chara laughs, "Honestly? After all these resets of stomping you to dust, I thought I had already killed you in this timeline."

"Well, you know I could never stay mad at you , Chara...why don't we work together again next time? RESET already, and we can have some real fun!"

"The thing with me Asriel, is that I have a harder time than you with 'burying the hatchet' so to speak. You see, I prefer to stab things that piss me off, and having my toy stolen from me? Well, let's just say the only way this hatchet is going to get buried is if you are dead!" Chara lunges at the vine holding Sans and cuts it clean in half, wincing as they hear him hit the rough dirt floor. He doesn't make a single sound of pain, but that is only more concerning.

However, they can't exactly pause to check on him in the middle of a FIGHT.

Flowey gives a pained but angry shriek at the loss of their vine, but they pull back, and three more grow in place of it, "It isn't that easy to fight me, Chara! I'm not just a little weed anymore!" He seems frustrated and confused as he glares at his sibling. "What do you even want with that trash bag?! He's so weak . He told me everything , Chara! It was so easy to make him talk, too! Just kill him and RESET already!"

"He is mine . I am not finished with him yet. And what does it matter that he told you what I did to him. I'm rather proud after all. Besides, you will be dead soon anyway soooo..." Chara clicks their tongue and shrugs. "Whatever he told you doesn't matter."

The flower laughs, "Oh it wasn't just your tortures that he shared, Chara." Flowey says sweetly, a vine reaching behind Chara and forcibly tilting up Sans's chin, "He's told me about your meals that you made him, your chats, you petting his head when he had a nightmare...you've gone soft , Chara!"

"So what if I take good care of my toys? It makes them last longer!" Chara spins around, chopping the vine touching Sans in half. Flowey takes advantage of their distraction, and loops a vine around their foot, hoisting them up into the air upside down. He laughs at their dizzy and then furious expression.

"Asriel, put me down this instant!" Chara shouted, trying to reach up and cut the vine holding them up.

Flowey grins, leaning in closer, "And he told me about Frisk, too."

Chara freezes, and their knuckles turn white as they grip their knife, "What ."

"Oh yes , Chara! I did say everything! I've been watching, you know! But I couldn't be sure until I made your pathetic 'pet' talk. And he said that you've been getting weaker? Losing to Frisk after all, huh?"

Sans shuts his eyes tighter - he hadn't said that. Not explicitly. It was more of what he was hoping for than what he thought.

"..p-put me down!" Chara shrieks as the vine around their ankle coils tighter, and they give a cry of pain, "Asriel stop it! "

Sans hears the underlying panic and agony in their voice. His fists clench as he checks his 0.02 H.P. His body is so shattered, he's falling further to pieces with every second. He'll be dust in a minute, he's sure of it.

His eye gives a sharp stab of pain that feels like a million needles piercing through his skull. He lifts up his head, his magic flaring a bright blue and yellow. A melting Gaster Blaster forms over his head, and the beam of energy pierces right through the vine holding Chara, managing to hit Flowey's body (a luckily large target and so easy to hit in spite of his blindness).

The weed screams and Sans collapses back to the ground, a sickly, blue-ish black liquid practically pouring from his eye. He doesn't have to try and check the flower's HP to know that he's done a critical damage, off-guard attack.

He wheezes out a laugh at Flowey's angry shrieking, eye shutting as Flowey recoils, "g-get d-dunked on…"

Chara falls to the ground as the vine attached to their limb is severed. They manage to roll into their landing, getting back to their feet and grinning nearly manically. They won't be caught off guard again. Pulling back their knife, they lunge towards their brother.

Sans can feel himself fading as he listens to the sounds of fighting, which is steadily turning into just loud, monotonous humming in his head. He's going to die. He's going to die and Chara will be so angry with him that they'll just RESET and Papyrus...

Flowey slaps Chara away with a spiked vine, laughing and glaring at both them and Sans, "Well well well! I guess your puppy is useful after all! Fine, then. I guess there is a bit more left to this world that I'd like to see!" Flowey withdraws, starting to disappear back into the ground, "Gee, Chara, he doesn't look so well! You'd better piece your toy back together before it turns to dust!" And with that, Flowey gives a demonic laugh and vanishes into the dirt.


	11. Chapter 11

Chara gasps from the pain of being slammed back, but they collect themselves quickly and get back to their feet. They see the sad, dark lump lying on the ground and hurry over to Sans, kneeling down next to him. "Sansy? You still with me?"

"...hhf...s-still h-here, b-boss…" But just barely.

Chara takes out a canister of soup from their inventory and begins to pour it slowly into Sans's mouth. Then they check his stats.

HP: 0.02/0.9...

...

HP: 0.01/0.9...

"..s-sorry, b-boss...i...i-i sh-shoulda...sh-shoulda h-held out, b-better.."

Chara feels their heart quickening. What should they do? They don't want to reset yet...they don't have any more health items, though - they'd used those on themselves during their fight.

His HP keeps dropping, slowly but surely. They can't get him back home in time. Their last SAVE point was when they went on a walk alone to Waterfall, when he was by himself at the house. Flowey will just capture him again and keep killing him until Chara RESETS.

" Maybe I can help?"

Chara freezes.

"I swear if this is a trick to get me to reset-"

"No, honest it's not. Mom taught me how to heal. It's been a long time but...please can I try?"

"Why would you want to help?"

"He's dying, Chara..."

"Fine, just make it quick. However, try anything and I will take our body back in an instant."

Frisk takes control. They attempt to sign to Sans until Chara reminds them that Sans is blind. They sigh, and put their hands on his chest near his soul, and concentrate their and Chara's shared magic, healing his body. Sans gives choked whimpers as broken bones piece back together - Frisk isn't strong enough to heal every bone completely, but...

'Chara may I heal his eye? I can't heal the magic one, I don't know how to do that, but, may I give him his sight back?'

"..."

' Please?'

"I...I suppose...he did help me and that deserves an award..."

Frisk smiles and braces their hands over his right socket. Sans grows tense, shivers, and then relaxes as the ache in his eye is soothed away.

Sans takes in a breath, slowly opening his eyes and giving a jolt of surprise when he sees Chara's face. "...i..i c-can s-see you…"

Chara takes control back, and nods. "You managed to be even more useless blind. On another note, why were you talking about Frisk? You think I'm getting weaker?"

"i..i d..d-didn't s-say that...h-he lied...you're not..i d-don't think that.."

"You brought it up to him. After making it clear that they don't exist. And to think I came to rescue you. How ungrateful." Chara seethes as they lift him by the collar.

Sans ducks his head, staying limp, "i know...i kn-know, i...i-i'm so s-sorry, boss...i d..didn't...didn't w-want to say anything, but he…" Sans swallows forcefully, trying to keep back tears, "h-he was gonna r-rip m-me apart...i was..i was really, really scared, i'm sorry…"

"You are so pathetic. What makes you think I am not going to rip you apart after what you just did? First letting him take you, then spilling everything , making me seem weak!"

Sans trembles, falling to his knees, "b-boss p-please...p-please d-don't RESET...i'm sorry, i...i m-messed up again , bec..because i-i'm a c-coward a-and an idiot, b-but d-don't R-RESET...p-please.." Sans shuts his eyes, shuddering as he gives a weak sob, "i-it's m-my f-fault d...p-please d-don't h-hurt m-my brother h-he's all i c-care about a-anymore...please, boss...please…"

"Very well. Let us head home. I don't have your leash, but if you stay close to me I might give you time to rest before you do a chore." Chara says, starting to walk away.

However, as the adrenaline fades, Chara's injuries become more prominent, and when they step forward, they fall, hissing in pain as their ankle protests. They clutch it for a moment, waiting for the pain to pass before standing up once more, favoring their uninjured foot.

Sans gently grabs their arm, holding them upright, "..i...i g-got you hurt…" Sans winces sharply, ducking his head, "..th..this is all my fault, i-i'm s-sorry.."

"You should be." They say, grinding their teeth, and wishing the adrenaline stayed with them longer.

"i..i-i'll make it up to you, somehow...i..i promise.." Sans keeps supporting their weight, looking around them in a paranoid manner for any sign of the long gone flower.

"You better." They say as the two leave the Ruins.

It takes them longer than it should to arrive back at the house.

"Do you want to rest in your bed, or on the couch?" Chara asks as they enter.

"r-really don't w-wanna go back to my r-room…"

"The couch it is." Chara says, leading him to the sofa. "I am going to stay with you to be ready if Flowey returns."

Sans nods, sitting down and hugging himself tightly. He feels like he's lost an extra layer of security with his jacket gone. Out of a now very common habit, Sans lays down on his side, watching Chara.

"...can...c-could you, uh…" Why is it so hard to ask? Sans looks down, shifting his jaw nervously.

"Finish your question." They order.

"don't...don't really wanna…close my eyes unless i'm...sure that you're there.." Sans tries to avoid asking directly, hoping Chara will just take a hint.

Chara sighs, and is just about to get on the couch when they realize what they are about to do. Why do I want to be close to him? Chara moves away from the couch, and sits on the floor in his field of vision, leaning against the couch. "There, you may sleep now."

...fuck it.

"..th-think you c-could, uh…" Sans shuts his eyes tightly for a moment. "..p-pet m-me? please?"

"Why would I want to do that?" Chara blurted, voicing their thoughts.

Sans winces, "c-cause...you like me, r-right, b-boss? j-just a bit?"

"Well I-I, i-it's not" Chara stutters, unable to come up with a reason, an excuse.

Anything to explain their eager desire to grant his wish. "Just shut your mouth!" They snap, frustration winning over.

Sans shrinks back from Chara's glare. He hasn't missed seeing that. "s-sorry b-boss it...th-that w-was a s-stupid q-question.."

"I said shut up! Go to sleep!" They cross their arms, contemplating. Sans is their toy. Their plaything . So why in the hell do they want affection from him, and to give affection in return? This isn't how it's supposed to go at all, and it infuriates them.

Sans shuts his eyes, curling up with his knees to his forehead, hugging himself and shivering. Stupid, stupid stupid... why had he thought that that was a remotely good idea? Serves him right…

Chara waits until he's asleep before gently tracing their fingers along his face, taking care not to wake him. Flowey's words echo in their mind.

...Maybe they have gone soft.

They pet his skull gently for a while as they get lost in thought. Once they snap back to reality and notice what they are doing, they grab Sans's collar and throw him to the floor.

Sans gives a gasp as he smacks into the wood tiling, holding his eye (it hurt just as much as before) and staring up into Chara's furious face, "b-boss? wh-what…?"

"Resting time is over, and the floor is filthy. You will clean the whole floor."

Sans slowly sits up, not taking his eye off of Chara, in case they lash out, "k-kay...no problem, b-boss.."

"Faster! You're moving too slow!" They say, snapping their fingers.

Sans gets to his feet, searching around for the cleaning supplies and moving into the kitchen. He doesn't know what he did wrong but he has to make up for it quickly.

"On your knees!" Chara demanded. "I don't care if you are still getting supplies I want you on your knees the entire time."

Sans drops to his knees like he's been shot the moment Chara yells at him. He stares at his captor with wide eyes, cowering under their glare. "...i-i d-don't kn-know wh-where...wh-where everything is, P-Paps...P-Paps w-was the one th-that cleaned…"

"Well you better find them now don't you think?" Chara says, bending down.

Sans looks at Chara with teary eyes, "wh-what'd i do w-wrong, b-boss…?"

"Does it matter? Right now your only focus should be obeying my orders!"

Sans swallows and crawls forward, head bowed deeply in humiliation as he begins searching the sink cupboards. What had he done? What had he….is it because he'd been captured? He can't think of what else.

Chara grows impatient, and joins in the search for the supplies. Once they find them, they wordlessly set them in front of Sans and then sit on the couch.

Sans grabs the cloth and water bucket, slowly starting to clean the kitchen. If he just shuffles from one tile to another while staying on his knees, it isn't as humiliating.

"Are you being slow on purpose to piss me off?" They asked impatiently.

Sans shakes his head, "n-no, b-boss...s-sorry i-i'll work faster.." He is quicker with cleaning the tiles, but continues to only shift around on his knees to avoid crawling.

Getting annoyed at his failure to go their desired speed, they put their foot on his spine, and they push him onto his hands. "This should help you go faster~"

"gh!" Sans tenses, shakily grabbing the sponge and wiping at the tile, "wh-what'd i do w-wrong..?" He whimpers to himself.

"Don't forget to clean the dining room floor as well. There is still spaghetti residue on it."

"y-you g-got it, b-boss.." Sans says, voice thick as he is on the edge of tears.

Chara sits on the couch and watches Sans clean, occasionally giving an order, or pointing out a missed spot, until finally Sans finishes.

He's shaking by the end, barely keeping it together, "..a-all d-done, b-boss…" Sans starts to get to his feet.

"Did I say you could stand?" Chara snaps.

Sans quickly drops back down, shaking his head and staring at his lap. He's trembling violently, practically holding his breath to keep from crying. "n-no, b-boss.."

"Very good. Now, crawl over here, and sit right here." They point to the spot on the floor directly in front of them.

Sans crawls forward, his breathing sounding like he's suffocating. He doesn't look at Chara, keeping his head down and turned away. He wants this to be over. Whatever he did he just wants to finish suffering for it so he can hide away from the world.

"You did a good job cleaning the floor, and as reward I will fulfill your request." They began to pet him gently. This wasn't because they wanted to do it, It was because this was a reward, and he is a pet and good pets get rewarded.

Sans flinches away from their hand, falling to his seat and scooting away just a bit, "gh..gh...p-please..p-please d-don't…"

"Come back here, I am not going to hit you." They say sternly.

A shaky sob finally escapes him, and tears start leaking from his eye, "b-boss i-i'm s-sorry i w-won't a-ask a-again i-i'll sh-shut up p-please s-stop...s-stop th-this, i-i l-learned m-my l-lesson p-please !" Sans shudders, shutting his eyes and holding his arms around his waist as he starts crying, so tired of the humiliation and games.

"I am going to pet you like you wanted, but if you are going to be ungrateful, you can just go to your room!"

Part of Sans wants to apologize, to accept the physical gesture of comfort. He's so starved of affection, he never knows how he's going to make it to the next day. But if asking for a little attention yielded this sort of punishment…

Sans slowly stands up, knees aching as he does the opposite of what Chara expected and goes to his room.

"Fine! Have it your way!" They shout, angry that they have basically been rejected. They pout for a while, before deciding they need a walk.

"I'm going for a walk. Don't even think of leaving the house while I'm gone!" They then head for the garbage dump in waterfall.

Sans can't even think of standing up, staying huddled in the corner of his room and trying to mute his crying. He feels cold - all he can really think of is how badly he needs his brother's scarf back.


	12. Chapter 12

Sans hears the door shut as Chara arrives back home. He sits down on the dogbed, wringing his wrists anxiously - hopefully Chara doesn't want any more to do with him today. Or forever. They seemed angry enough with him to not want to speak to him...so maybe-

"Sansy~ I'm home~ And you will never guess what I found!"

So maybe he should stop trying to get his hopes up.

He doesn't take that as permission to leave his room, but figures he has to respond, "yeah? what is it?" He calls tiredly, rubbing at his forehead.

"Come and see!~"

Sighing, Sans gets up, moving to shove his hands in pockets that weren't there anymore. When he realizes once more the absence of his jacket, he sighs again and just lets his arms hang loosely at his sides as he wanders out of his room. Goddamn he misses that grungy piece of clothing...more than he thought he ever could.

Sans braces his hands on the balcony railing, leaning over it slightly and squinting.

The first thing he notices is that Chara is holding up two items. The second thing he notices is what the items are. Papyrus's scarf, and a brown, leather asylum muzzle.

"Look Sans! Isn't this neat?" Chara's grin widens, and Sans feels his SOUL freeze in his chest, "I found your scarf! Aren't you happy?"

"y...y-yeah...thanks b-boss…" Sans forces a smile, clinging tighter to the rail.

"And even better...I found this!" They wrap Papyrus's scarf around their neck and display the leather mask - it's an ugly, horrid thing, with rusty buckles and worn straps covering the back of it. There's a locked flap in the front for eating, Sans presumes, but it doesn't give much freedom of movement for the jaw. Just looking at it makes him shudder.

"...yeah, uh...that...th-that's pretty neat…" Sans says, looking away when he senses Chara wants him to comment further, "...uh, good...g-good find…" Terrible find. Horrible, terrible find.

The child giggles, beckoning Sans with a finger, "Come here, Sansy~"

Swallowing, Sans slowly descends the stairs, dragging his feet as though delaying the inevitable will help him whatsoever. Besides maybe giving him a little extra time to brace himself for the humiliation, it does him no good. He stops a few paces away from Chara, bony fingers knotting together in a silent plea for mercy.

"Do you want your brother's scarf back?" Chara asks in a sweet tone, tilting their head innocently and blinking at him.

"...y...y-yes please, b-boss.." Sans whispers.

They brace their hand under his chin, forcing him to look at them, "Then let's make a deal, Sansy...you can have both or neither...your choice."

His chin trembles, "wh...why are you doing this…?"

"Why do I do anything?" Chara giggles, leaning in closer and delighting at the fear that shows in the skeleton's eyes, "Because it's fun ...and considering how you ran your mouth with Flowey, it only makes sense that I should remind you how to shut up every now and again, don't you agree?" They pat his cheek, "Now decide. Both, or neither?"

Sans gulps, practically crushing his own hands as he locks them tightly around each other, fingertips lightly chipping away at the bone, "...i'll...i-i'll t-take..i'll t-take b-both…"

"What was that?" Chara tilts their head, putting a hand behind their ear and grinning, "You want the muzzle?~"

Sans takes a step back, breathing quickening ever so slightly as he tries to soothe the painful, burning ache in his chest. His shoulders start shaking with the effort.

"Sansy, come back here." Chara says firmly, holding up the mask again, "Are you telling me you want this muzzle?"

Very, very slowly he steps forward again, arms wrapped tightly around his waist. "...y-yeah.." He keeps his head down, unable to look at them.

"How badly do you want it?"

"...really badly…?"

Chara smirks, "Beg me to muzzle you, Sansy. And don't hold back~"

Sans freezes, hands shaking as he hunches down slightly, a poorly muffled sob escaping him, "p-please d-don't m-make m-me do th-this, b-boss.." He pleads.

"Oh you don't have too...if you are willing to lose your brothers scarf~"

Dropping his head, Sans sinks to his knees, holding his face in his hands, "...muzzle me."

"That doesn't sound like begging~"

"p-please m-muzzle m-me. sh-shut me up. p-please! " He feels disgusting.

"You can do better than that." Chara braces a foot over his skull, pushing his head into the floor.

" gh! " He bites his teeth as his forehead smacks against the wooden panels, curls his hands into tight fists. Sans forces himself to remember that he'll be getting Papyrus's scarf, too - so he pleads for that, just switching the words, "b-boss p-please, p-please l-let m-me h-have the m-muzzle, i need...i n-need it i w-want it i r-really w-want it, p-please, please ...i-it's all i w-want th-that's a-all i w-want i just w-want...w-want t-to b-be m-muzzled…"

Chara laughs delightedly, clapping for a moment and giggling in sadistic glee. "Good boy!" They praise, patting his head before grabbing the collar of his t-shirt and yanking him back up to rest on his knees. Humming pleasantly, Chara drops the scarf on the floor, and walks up to Sans, "Hold it to your face while I fasten it."

Sans clutches the horrible thing against his head, grunting and shutting his eyes when Chara pulls it cruelly tight around his skull. It feels like his jaw is going to crack. Of course, Chara pulls it just shy of that intensity. Some sort of bit is shoved between his teeth as they fasten the flap in the front, and he can't budge his chin a single millimeter.

It smells disgusting. It's hard to breathe. His hearing is dampened, and he can't look up from the floor now because he might accidentally look Chara in the eye. More than half of his already halved vision is blocked, anyway. Isn't that convenient?

He drops forward onto his hands, arms shaking as he tries to take in air through the thick fabric around his mouth. It's nearly impossible while he's crying, so he tries to bring his breathing under control. "hff...hff..h-hhff…" His eyes close, and he slowly pulls himself back onto his knees.

"I must say Sansy, that's a good look for you~" Chara snickers, scratching under his chin mockingly. They walk over to where the scarf was thrown, and they wrap it around their neck. "Unfortunately, while you begged very well, it wasn't quite enough to earn you the scarf as well."

Sans opens his eyes to stare at the floor, choking as he fights back the urge to scream in frustration. No. No no no no why were they doing this to him what had he done wrong he was trying so hard why was it never good enough-?!

In the end, the overwhelming emotions spinning his head die out in one thought, 'it doesn't matter. i'll never be good enough. i'll always do something wrong. they hate me. everything they give me they'll just take away. so what does it even matter?'

Silently he draws up his knees and drops his forehead against them. He's shaking, but he doesn't cry. Not because he's trying to be stubborn, but because he can't bring himself to muster the emotional energy to do so. He's exhausted. Too exhausted to scream, to try to fight, to beg, to sob...these desires stay in his head, and his body stays still.

"Oh Sansy, why so glum?" They start petting his skull gently. "It's not permanent. After all, we do have dinnertime~"

He's not hungry. He's too disgusted to swallow anything. He ignores the gentle pets and instead just curls up tighter, hoping he can disappear.

"But that's not for a few hours so, I guess you can just do as you wish for a while."

There's really no question. Sans gets up, going into his room away from Chara. He tucks himself away in the corner, facing the wall. 'wow, it'd sure be great if i could just die now.'

A couple hours pass, and Chara finds themselves getting restless. They weren't really bored ... it was something else that they wanted.

"Sans, come here!"

Already they want to hurt him again? How much lower can they possibly tear him? Sans forces himself to his feet, reluctant to leave the darkness of his room. One thing was for sure, this muzzle had definitely cured him of his need for attention. He didn't want to be spoken to, touched, or even looked at.

That wasn't a choice though.

He eventually ends up in front of Chara again, staring at the floor.

"Come here." They say as they pat the couch beside them. On the TV reruns of Chara's hunting rounds are playing. "Come sit with me."

Sans shuffles forward and plops down. He glances up at the screen as they bring their knife down on Doggo, laughing manically as he dissolves into dust. The skeleton gives a slight shudder when the kid starts kicking it around in childish delight, rubbing at his bare arms nervously.

They pat their legs. "Come lay down."

Sans stares at their lap apprehensively, really not wanting to go down that route again. Not because he was scared of them hurting him. He was more terrified that they might be gentle.

Chara's eyes narrow as he hesitates, and so he shuts his eyes and slowly lays down on his side, as relaxed as a victim resting their neck on a chopping block.

They smile as he complies to their order, and began to do just as he feared. They gently pet his skull and down his arm in gentle, soothing motions.

Sans shivers, wide eyes watching what he can see of Chara's hand. "ghhnn…" He shuts his eyes as their fingers brush against the more sensitive bones in his neck and back.

"Hmm? What was that Sansy? Are you trying to say something?"

He shakes his head, arching his back a bit in an attempt to stop the trembling. If this kid could literally get their dirty mitts off of his back, that'd be great. They however, continue to stroke from his head to the end of his arm idly, watching in mild amusement at the screen. It would seem that Sans no longer likes their ( obviously fake) affection.

Good. That's how they want it.

Chara's brow twitches. At least, it's how they think they want it...they aren't sure. They scowl for a second and look back at the screen to distract themselves.

Sans watches with mostly apathy as the Snowdin monsters are crushed one by one. Nothing he hasn't seen a dozen times before.

But then…

"HUMAN…"

Sans grows tense immediately, breathing quickening, "nnh.."

"Oh look Sansy, it's your brother!"

He starts to tremble violently as Chara draws closer, knife drawn, smiling like the demon they are. "pah...pahh..hhf..nnggh!"

'Why didn't you run why did you trust them why are you so kind and pure you don't deserve this-'

There's the sound of Papyrus turning to dust, his head still alive, "I BELIEVE IN YOU, EVEN IF YOU DON'T!"

Chara scoffs at Papyrus's words. A scoff that could be mistaken for disbelief, but is merely dubious.

Left with seemingly no other option, Sans suddenly rolls over and hides his face against Chara's stomach, flinching at the sound of Chara crushing Papyrus's skull under their foot. His tears soak into Chara's sweater almost instantly.

Chara strokes his head soothingly. "Shhh, it's over Sansy, its ok now~"

"ghhh...hhff..hff…" Sans draws in his knees, clinging to his captor tightly in an awkward sort of lying down hug. How many more times were they going to make him watch this? He couldn't take it anymore. He couldn't. Once more and he'd...he'd….

Chara tenses as Sans grips them in a hug. They...aren't sure how to respond. They are frozen for a few moments, and then just end up petting his head a few more times.

He knew this was going to happen. He'd tried to guard himself against it, repeated mantras in his head that repeated that Chara was a demon, untrustworthy, abusive, evil …

But he was so fucking pathetic, so goddamn lonely that he sought out comfort from anywhere he could. Even his brother's murderer. "...nhh..gh.." He tries to communicate some sort of apology, some excuse for his behavior.

Chara giggles. "Are you trying to say something Sansy?"

He shuts his eyes. His 'funny noises' aren't doing him any good. He won't try to say anything again.

"Aww, come on, don't clam up on me now, wouldn't that be a little shellfish ?" They snicker at their own joke.

Sans shuts his eyes tighter, trying to breathe in through the suffocating muzzle on his head. He still remembers when he used to make jokes. It seems like forever ago.

Chara continues to pet him. "It's alright Sansy boy. Just remember, you are protecting your brother from a worse fate just by being here. You should feel good~"

Chara's nails graze his skull a bit and cause him to shiver, tensing up a little, "nngh...hff…" Against his will he relaxes for a moment before gaining his composure and silencing himself again.

Chara giggles once more. "Honestly Sans, if you have something to say you can say it~ or, at least try to" Chara can't help but snicker.

He stubbornly locks his jaw. He's not an attention-starved kitten, he isn't going to just start purring because of a little gentle scratching. 'pull yourself together, pal...sheesh...you've got some dignity left, don'tcha?'

"Come on Sansy, you have nothing to get off your chest?"

More stubborn silence.

"Fine have it your way." They stop petting him, and instead keep their hand at their side, pouting.

A completely involuntary whine comes from Sans's throat when Chara stops touching him. His cheeks flare bright blue, embarrassed that he's let such a pathetic sound escape him.

"I think you should make up your mind Sansy. Your mixed reactions in my company are very confusing to me."

Sans groans, wishing that he could have the self-respect it took to get up and leave, to go back to his room. But after weeks or even months of nothing but harsh punishments and painful torture, this is bliss . Fuck it all. He just wants a gentle touch.

He feels a bit more of his dignity chipping away as he shifts to his back and looks up with wide, pleading eyes.

"Yes? Tell me what you want Sansy~" They are grinning. They know exactly what Sans wants, they just want to hear those 'funny noises'.

"..phh..puh..mmuh..?" He tries.

"What was that Sansy? I couldn't quite understand."

A groan of frustration slips through. "..mnng..hhnn…" He curls up against Chara more, rubbing his skull against their stomach like a puppy asking for attention.

"You want me to pet you more? Is that it Sansy boy?"

He nods, "mhmm.."

"Hmm, I suppose, if you tell me how much you really want me too~"

Sans silences the voice in his mind telling him to cling to his dignity. He lifts himself up on one hand, pressing his head against Chara's shoulder and making a noise that's foreign even to him - his jaw rattles in such a way that his teeth make a sound similar to a purr.

Chara can't help but laugh as they reach out and begin to pet him once more. "Alright Sansy, you have earned it~"

Finally..

Sans lays back down in their lap, this time being sure to be as vocal as possible. He winces and gives a grunt whenever Chara touches an uncomfortable area, a hum whenever they stroke a place he really likes, and a shiver and moan whenever Chara finds a sweet spot, one of them being the back of his head.

'this isn't so bad,' he tells himself, 'it isn't so bad…'

They are enjoying this. They want this. Why do they want this?

Why do they feel the need to soothe him after he watched his brother die, instead of mocking him like they usually do? Are they actually starting to... No.

They stand up quickly, knocking Sans to the floor. He is their pet, they have a right to, no... no he is a toy. A toy not a pet.

"I've got to go." Chara says abruptly, kicking Sans out of their way as they tighten the scarf around their neck and pick up their knife from the bedside table, "Stay here Sans, do not leave the house. At all . You know the consequences of doing so." They then left the house with no other words, leaving Sans in a heap of confused and conflicting thoughts of self-hatred and a shy fondness for his captor.

He recognizes this, but he doesn't have the energy to argue with himself over it. If he's going to be here for forever...well, then this is all just inevitable, isn't it?

And Sans knows far too well that there's no sense in delaying that.


	13. Chapter 13

Sans stares blankly at the ceiling for a moment when he hears the door slam shut, blinking himself out of his daze. He sits up, bracing his hands behind him, and rubs at his forehead - well he'd somehow pissed them off again. Great. At least they stormed off instead of punishing him - their torture is always terrible but the whiplash he gets when they abruptly switch from being affectionate fucks with his head.

His fingers run along the back of the muzzle, testingly poking at the straps and getting a feel for the locks. The way the buckles and ties twist around each other makes no sense to him and he eventually drops his hands, giving an exhausted sigh. Sans hadn't been going to remove it, of course - there were zero was that that can go well for him. But it's so painfully tight...he was hoping to loosen it a bit, but apparently that isn't going to happen.

'ugh, permanent migraine...this kid thinks up the worst tortures, i swear…' He leans back against the couch, staying rest on the floor and rubbing at his forehead, wincing. Back when he still worked at the lab, he'd get headaches fairly often from overworking himself. Sans snorts, giving a weak chuckle through the bit in his teeth and shaking his head. Hilarious how things had changed. Now he has a headache because he'd been lazy about protecting the Underground.

Not exactly a clean, straight line between cause and effect, of course.

Sans glances up at what he can see of his room, eye twitching in thought. He suddenly realizes that Chara has never even mentioned the secret lab in his room. Considering the brat's fanatical desire to get their dirty mitts on any personal possession of his, he's surprised that they haven't forced him to let them in there so they could break everything (or try to).

Does Chara not know about it…?

Sans thinks back as far as he is able, shutting his eyes and trying to recall...did he ever give Frisk the key to his lab? He remembers telling them the first one, at least - when they'd RESET after killing Asgore the first time. Apparently they'd been too eager to reach their happy ending to take time to load a SAVE and tell him the password again.

….and then the RESET..the one after having been living for three years on the surface.

God...waking up back in his room in the Underground...Papyrus couldn't console him. Nothing could. Sans kept muttering to himself that it was just a nightmare, that he'd wake up back in New New Home at any moment.

But he didn't.

He remembers thinking that something drastic must have happened to cause the kid to rip everything away like that. Someone had died, maybe...maybe even the kid had gotten killed while he wasn't looking. But greeting them on their way into Snowdin...they didn't look like someone who had experienced any sort of emotional trauma. There was no guilt. Just childish laughter and excitement.

They reached the end again.

They RESET again.

And again and again and again…

Sans takes in a shaky breath, squeezing his eyes shut tightly and letting out a harsh breath through his nose. 'great timing. definitely a good time to think over an emotionally devastating event.'

What conclusion had he even been trying to reach?

...oh. Right. His lab.

No. No he hadn't given them the key. He didn't know at what point Chara had taken over Frisk, but he doesn't have to think back to try and remember if he ever trusted a sociopathic kid coated in dust.

So he has one last safe place.

Sans resists the urge to go there now. He'll keep away from it until he can think of a good use for it that won't get it found out, or result in Chara resetting.

They're pretty insistent about him always being within their reach. Not literally , thank God. No, Chara's possessive behavior hasn't reached that point. But if he goes anywhere that they can't immediately find him, he's fucked.

"Howdy!"

Sans leaps to his feet at the sound of that voice, spinning on his heels to face it with wide eyes. The grinning face of Flowey greets his eyes, and he immediately notes the open window behind him. Why hadn't he locked that?! Double-checking the locks should have been the first thing he did the moment Chara left him alone-

He jumps back when Flowey makes a move to grab him, dodging the first vine but Flowey manages to grip him around the ankle and hoist him into the air, dangling him above the floor. "That's no way to greet an old pal, Sans! Did you forget your manners?"

Sans doesn't respond (obviously), just struggles to lean up and scratch at the coil holding him. Of course horizontal sit-ups are impossible enough for him, and adding in a vertical and upside-down factor just makes it even worse. Flowey just watches him in amusement for a few minutes, letting him try to grab his vine repeatedly until he goes slack, huffing and puffing and red in the face.

"You done, trash bag?"

Sans glares at him, managing to cross his arms sulkily.

Flowey laughs, leafy tendons reaching out and wrapping around each individual rib as the hem of the skeleton's shirt falls, exposing his chest. Sans keeps up his glare, but he's shaking in spite of himself. Flowey giggles, "Ooh, what a scary snarling puppy!" He mocks, taking hold of both sides of his collar and giving it a tug, "You should remember your place, trash bag. You're not exactly in any position to be difficult." Flowey turns his head upside down, giving a wide, hollow grin, "Are you?"

Sans gives a huff, but turns his eyes away. Chara will be back soon, and then this stupid weed can finally die…

Flowey strokes the side of Sans's face, admiring his new accessory with a wicked smirk, "Chara was right. This is a good look for you. The less anyone has to see of your stupid, smiley face, the better." The flower suddenly scowls at him, tightening their grip on his ankle.

He's seen Sans's smug grin too many times, and been killed too much by this stupid comedian to consider it a bygone. He pulls the vine tighter until Sans gives a muted grunt of pain and squeezes his eyes shut.

Just before the pressure can fracture the bone, however, Flowey's face abruptly twists into a malicious smile, leaning in closer. "Tell me a joke, Sans!"

Sans narrows his eyes, squinting at the flower in confusion and befuddlement. A joke ? Really? How the fuck is he supposed to-

Flowey unclips the smaller hooks on the front muzzle that free his mouth.

"excuse me?" Sans asks, his voice a bit hoarse.

"You heard me, Sans. Tell me a joke!"

Sans squints at him, "kinda puttin' me on the spot he-" The vines on his ankle tighten, threatening to fracture the bone, "gah! alright alright..!" Okay...he can still tell jokes. Right?

Flowey smirks, tilting his head and waiting patiently.

"uh...why...why do flowers care so much about each other..wait, that's not how- gaah! shit!-" The patient expression on his tormentor's face has quickly worn off, " ..l-let's just go with that phrasing…"

Flowey rolls his eyes up, giving a dramatic 'hmmmm' as he pretends to think, "Golly, Sans, I don't know! Why?"

"cause they always photosympathize ..h-heh."

Flowey shakes his head, sighing and squeezing Sans's ankle until it fractures. "Sorry, I've already heard that one." Flowey says over his yelps, "Try again!"

Sans is sweating, trying to fight past the pain, "t-tough crowd.." He wheezes.

"Don't keep me waiting, puppy! Give me another one!"

"don't call me that." Sans grumbles, immediately choking as Flowey pulls tight on his collar again, "gah!-"

"I'll call you whatever I want, trash bag. And it's not even like it isn't true! That's exactly what you are!" Flowey grins, "So say it."

Sans stays silent, only glaring.

"Or should I make you bark for me too?"

"...i'mapuppy." Sans mumbles.

"Loudeerrrrr~"

"i'm a puppy! happy?"

"Golly, Sans, no need to be so rude about it. Chara really needs to do a better job teaching you your manners. Oh, but they aren't here. I guess little ol' me will have to do!" Flowey winks, tightening their hold around his neck. "Tell me a joke, comedian!"

Sans mostly wants to flip him off, but he shifts his jaw and complies, "why couldn't the gardener plant any flowers." He practically growls.

"I dunno! Why?"

"he hadn't botany . hahah. let me go."

"Not with that attitude, puppy. I think you should beg for it!"

"fuck you."

Flowey only smiles brighter, "Hey Sans, remember last time we talked?"

Sans shifts his eyes away, glare weakening slightly.

Flowey recites him in a perfect imitation, "p-please, F-Flowey, p-please d-don't h-hurt m-me a-anymore...i-i'm t-too….t-too w-weak a-and...a-and p-pathetic to h-handle i-it j-just...p-please…" Flowey laughs, as Sans winces. "Guess I'll just have to encourage you again!"

"stop it." Sans says weakly. "this isn't the same. i know you can't hurt me as bad as last time. you don't want Chara knowing you're watchin' us, do yah?" He gives a failing grin, winking, "sorry, pal, but you're plumb outta luck."

The smile that Flowey gives in return fills his gut with dread, "Who said anything about hurting you, trash bag?"

"..what, you just gonna keep makin' me tell jokes? that's not exactly difficult for me to put up with."

"Nooo…" A vine reaches in from behind his spine. Sans gives a jolt as he feels tendrils wrap around his SOUL, "Even better!"

Sans gives a panicked gasp, yelping as Flowey abruptly switches his hold to Sans's wrists, holding them above his head and letting his toes just barely graze the floor. "no no no no i'm sorry you were right i'm weak and pathetic don't do this -"

In half a second Flowey has the muzzle shut again, "Gee, puppy, let me have a little fun before giving up so fast! I know that's what you do best and all, but really …" Flowey holds his face right in front of Sans, staring into his terrified eyes, "You had your chance, trash bag. Now this goes on until I think you've had enough!"

Sans is left to dangle freely from his wrists, trying to kick out at the flower but only managing to squirm uselessly. No no no no no no no-!

Flowey's hold on Sans's SOUL tightens and he jolts, but he doesn't feel the pain he expected. Feelings of warmth, of safety, of calm and blissful happiness are sent through him and he goes limp, closing his eyes and letting out a breath. Everything is alright, finally, it's a-

Abruptly the hold is taken away and Sans is shoved back under the waves of panic and hysterics as Flowey changes his intentions, like his head is being forced under water. "nnngh! hff hff hhff…!" His bones shake as he slowly opens his eyes, vision hazy. He winces at the proximity of Flowey's grinning face.

"Golly, Chara was right. You make the best noises!" The flower laughs, hoisting Sans up a bit higher to jostle him back to reality, "What's the matter, puppy? Hasn't your brother touched your SOUL before? He's family, after all. And you've got so many dark days. Doesn't that bring back happy memories? Don't you remember being soothed out of your little depression fits by Papyrus?"

Sans is wheezing, trying to breathe through his sobbing. This needs to stop it needs to stop right now -

He feels the tendrils wrap around his SOUL again and he screams , thrashing away as best he can from Flowey's grip, tears pouring down his face as he yelps out muffled pleas. Anything else. Anything else -

Flowey giggles at the skeleton - he really is a fun toy. He looks at the SOUL and pushes a thorn into it, letting his hatred towards Sans be the driving force behind his intentions. Sans chokes, shrinking back as fear makes his vision tunnel.

'i'm gonna die i'm gonna die he hates me he's gonna fucking kill me i-'

The thorn withdraws and Sans's SOUL is given a gentle squeeze. His eyes half close as he gives a happy sigh, chuckling, 'heh...this is the best day of my life...everything is...it's fine. dunno why i'm so scared of it it's not that b-'

The pressure tightens, and he feels something sharp scrape down the middle of his SOUL. He gives a violent sob, shutting his eyes and crying, 'they're all dead it's my fault my friends are all dead because of me, my brother...Papyrus, i'm never gonna see him again...i was too selfish, too scared to help them...i wanna go home...i wanna just take a nap and have Paps carry me to work i wanna sell my hot dogs again i miss the stars i miss my brother i miss everyone it's all my fault-'

Flowey drops Sans to the ground, shoving the monster's SOUL back into his chest and giggling as Sans cries out, trying to piece his emotionally scrambled mind back together with no success. He stays cowering on the floor, looking around and hyperventilating through a mix of tears and hysterical laughter.

"I'll be back, Sansy." Flowey says, sensing Chara's footsteps growing close. "But you shouldn't have given me so much trouble. I'm going to have to make sure you remember not to do it again." He takes the DVD showing Papyrus's death from the player and breaks it into pieces, "There! Chara won't be happy about that, I bet. Oh, and Sans…" He takes the skeleton's chin, forcing his head up, "Fight me again, and I'll tell Chara everything I know about SOUL torture…" Flowey withdraws, giggling, "I wonder what they would do with it!" Giving one final wink, the Flower shrinks back out the window, shutting the pane behind him.

Sans rushes up the stairs to his room, tearing through his dressers in search of clothing as he takes in strangled gasps of air through the muzzle. There's no rationality to his actions. All he knows is that his SOUL feels more exposed and in danger than it ever should, and he has to protect it. He clumsily and frantically pulls on two more t-shirts and an orange and black hoodie, crossing his arms over his chest as he stumbles back and presses himself up in the far corner of the room.

He shuts his eyes and curls up tightly, refusing to open them again for fear of seeing that flower's face.


End file.
